Just my story
by Alexxx100
Summary: Annabeth has a crush on the single dad, Percy. She is quite close to his 5 year old daughter. But, will he notice her?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: I don't own the characters or anything you may recognise.**

 **Annabeth**

" Bye Melissa," I say when Melissa's mom comes to collect her.

" Bye Miss Chase," She waves back. Her mother nods to me as they leave. I sit at my chair, which lies behind a massive table which holds a large number of kids books, my pen-case, crayons spread here and there, a pile of papers, a paper weight over the pile, and a few pencils and some where underneath all this mess my phone. That's how a kindergarten teacher's desk looks like most of the time.

Its 2:54, school gets off at 3. But, most of the parents start arriving around 2:30. By this time, only 5 students, Brandon, Marvin, Alessa , Ruth and Perrie are left to go home. Brandon and Ruth go home by school bus while other kids parents must be on their way.

Brandon and Marvin have still not finished their argument over if Superman is better or Batman. They have been at it since morning. Ruth has been acting as the moderator and the one to decide on the result. Alessa won't ever sit tight, she has to roam around the whole classroom toying around with everything. She occasionally takes Brandon's side or sometimes speaks on behalf of Marvin. Perrie just sits quietly scribbling on a piece of paper with crayons. She is different today, not her usual cheery self.

The bell rings after 6 minutes.

" Come on kids." I slip my phone in my skirt pocket, get up and beckon the 5 kids to follow me. They pack their bags and we all drop Brandon and Ruth to their respective school buses. I take the remaining 3 students and we wait by the reception area, which provides a clear view of the school's main door, that's where their parents will come. A few other teachers stand around with some kids.

' BLOSSOM SCHOOL FOR KIDS' , the sign tells the school name. I joined this school 10 months ago. Teaching kids was some thing that fascinated me since the start. When I was 16, I had decided I was gonna be a teacher when I am older. I fulfilled my dream and made sure I had interned as a kindergarten teacher, before applying for this job. I made it, out of the 16 candidates. And soon, these 5 year olds became an important part of my life, which I never wanted to let go or forget.

Perrie and I are standing at the same place since the last 15 minutes, while Marvin and Alessa left with their father and mother, respectively. Its just us now.

" Daddy's late." Perrie frowns and walks over to sit at a chair, nearby. I follow her lead, pat her shoulder, ruffle her hair and sit beside her.

" Miss Chase?" Perrie points to her shoes. I see her shoe laces are undone. I chuckle and bend down to tie them up nicely.

" Daddy doesn't know how to tie them properly. He fumbles and forgets," She laughs.

Perrie talks a lot. She talks to me all the time. She tells me a load of things, starting from what she had for breakfast to what her Daddy's favourite food is.

" Is that so?" I laugh along.

" Yeah," She can't stop smiling.

" Can I see your drawing?" I ask casually.

" Yes." Perrie jumps up in excitement. She fishes in her bag and pulls out a piece of paper, which contains the drawing.

I peer at it, she has captioned it on the top, ' Daddy and me' with a pencil. Below the caption is a tall male figure holding hands with a small girl. Her drawing is quite neat. The male figure has big green eyes and she has the same. Perrie has her father's eyes. These are the two prettiest pairs of eyes I have ever seen.

" I made this to cheer Daddy up," Her face brightens, as she tells me.

" Cheer him up?" I echo.

" He looked upset last night," Her face is leaden with sadness, as if it was her fault. Perrie is quite smart for her age.

" Did he tell you why?" I ask, still looking at the drawing. The background shows a clear blue sky, birds flying around and some trees. Their faces are wearing big happy smiles.

" Does he ever?" She rolls her eyes.

" This is really good," I beam at her. " It should make him smile."

" I hope," Perrie shrugs and stuffs it back in her bag.

" Annabeth?" I look up on hearing Piper(my college)'s voice. Piper is my junior. She just joined 2 months ago. She is pretty much my best friend here.

" Hi Piper."

" Hello Miss Mclean," Perrie greets her.

" You're still here," Piper smiles at Perrie. She nods.

" Her father is late," I tell her.

" Again?" She asks.

" Miss Mclean he's not usually late," Perrie argues. " Only once a while."

" Once a while?" Piper says thinking hard," That should be okay, shouldn't it, Beth?"

" I guess s-" I stop mid sentence upon hearing hurried footsteps.

" Daddy!" Perrie exclaims happily as I see a tall, lean and muscular guy with dark hair and sea green eyes running towards us. Perrie leaps on her feet and darts towards him. He stops and waits for her. Perrie runs into his arms.

" I am sorry, Per," He says dropping on his knees and moves his hand on the back of Perrie's head. " My baby, are you alright?"

" I am okay, daddy," Perrie says. " I had Miss Chase and Miss Mclean with me."

" That's so nice of them, isn't it?" He smiles.

" It is."

" Daddy should go and thank them, then. You wait here, will you?"

" Yes Daddy," Perrie says obediently.

He walks up to us and we both stand up . He's wearing a white shirt with black pants and a black tie, his office outfit.

" Thank you so much Miss chase," he nods to me and then to Piper," Miss Mclean. I am really grateful and sorry."

" Okay," I mutter.

" No Problem," Piper says brightly.

" Lets go home?" He asks Perrie, extending his hand for her to grab.

" Bye Miss Chase and Miss Mclean." Perrie clasps his hand and they walk out of the premises.

OMIGOSH I NEED TO SIT DOWN.

OMIGOD.

WHERE DID THE CHAIR GO?

DAMN IT.

" Annabeth, what's with you?" Piper looks at me suspiciously.

" What do you mean?"

" I just saw," She shakes her head 3 times.

" What?" I snarl.

" Don't you 'what' me." She points her index at me.

" But seriously, what did I do?" I ask her.

" That- that- that," She moves her finger back and forth two times, " No ' That was a pleasure.' ' Don't mention it.' ' Its part of my job.' . You said, " OKAY." Okay? Is that even an answer?"

" Yes it is, Piper. If I ask you like,' How was your day?' , You might end up answering, "OKAY". " I try to explain.

" NO no no no no! That was something else. You better tell me or," She warns.

" Or?" I retort.

" Or imma call your Mum and make you t-"

" Fine, no you aint doing that please," I plead.

" You like him?" She says grinning widely.

" NO! I don't. I just may have a tiny little," I say gesturing small with my fingers, showing a 3 inch gap between them," crush on him."

Okay the truth is I do like him. A lot.

" That's gross," She says making a disgusted face.

" Why?" I fold my arms across my chest.

" He is a dad. He is old and married," She rolls her eyes.

" Piper Mclean," I burst into chuckles.

" What?" She growls.

" Percy Jackson is not married and not old," I continue amidst my laughing.

" But-" She protests.

" He's just 23. Works as a Software Tester in Sam Electronics. His girlfriend and him never got married. His mum lives in Arizona with his step father, Paul. His dad died when he was 3. Perrie and Percy live about 40 blocks from here. And, no, I am not a stalker. Perrie. Perrie tells me everything."

Piper's mouth drops open in surprise. I close it with my hand.

" How long? How long has this been going on?" She asks composing herself.

" Dunno. Around approximately 10 months," I fix my skirt.

" And you wouldn't have ever told me if I hadn't seen it by myself," She says in disappointment.

" Sorry."

" So when are you asking him out?"

" What?" I laugh, " No never ever. I have a crush on him. He doesn't. He barely notices me. Today was the third time we eveeeeer talked, if you call that a chat. My heart was pounding so fast when he was walking towards us." I put a hand on my heart," All the words in my mind got locked in a closet whose key I couldn't find. I couldn't speak a single word."

" You are actually talking like you are in love with him."

" Maybe I am," I tease.

" No Annabeth, don't fall in that pit. You don't even know the guy. What if he is bad?" She gasps in horror.

" He's not," I sit down.

" How do you know?" She sits beside me.

" I told you. Perrie. She tells me. She tells me everything and 5 year olds don't lie. According to the way she talks about him, he is a lovely guy. He loves his daughter more than anyone else. He's kind and sweet."

" If you are so sure about it, I'll approve it Annabeth. But, be careful," Piper says in a concerned voice.

" Oh I will be don't you worry," I smile.

Though I am sure Percy doesn't even know my name. He called me Miss Chase. Falling for someone who doesn't even notice you, leads to disappointment mainly.

 **PERCY**

Perrie and I leave the school. Gods I am so glad, she's safe. Miss Chase as I have learnt is quite reliable. I thanked her and even said sorry.

" Perrie, you hungry baby?" I ask Perrie as we reach home. Its not big, but its home. We have 2 bedrooms with attached washrooms and a lawn outside. The dinning area and the kitchen are quite small, but enough for two.

" A slight bit," She says.

Reminds me of her mother. That's how she used to talk.

" I took out some food," I unlock the door and reach for my car keys from the table beside the door. I pocket them.

" Go wash your hands."

" Okay Daddy," She runs off to the washroom.

I serve her the food and she and I eat as she tells me about her day. I listen with full attention, she talks a lot especially about her friends and her teacher, Miss Chase. We finish the food quickly and I collect the dishes.

I still have to go some where, Sam, my boss, told me to check some one's laptop for bugs. I have the address. Its near Perrie's school.

" I made you something, Daddy," Perrie says as I put the dishes in the dishwasher.

" Wow ! Can I see it?" I ask in surprise.

" Here," She brings over a drawing. I look at it closely to see us, her and I. The caption is,' Daddy and me.' Under it is a drawing of me holding hands with her. Behind us, I see some trees and our faces are covered in big grins. That brings a big smile on my face. All my sadness goes away when I spent time with my daughter. She makes me happier than anyone else ever could.

" Do you like it?"

" Its so good Perrie. I love it. Thank you so much," I say brightly." I am going to frame this."

At 6, I receive a text from Sam indicating I have to go.

" Perrie, daddy has to go some where for work. I'll be back in an hour or two," I tell Perrie, as she watches her cartoon.

" If there is a prob-"

" I know Daddy, I have to call you or the neighbours," She says.

" That's my baby," I kiss her forehead before leaving.

 **Annabeth**

" Lets leave for now," Piper puts her hand on mine.

I nod and we rise to our feet. We mark our attendance before leaving for food. I live in a small apartment near the school, so there is no commuting problem. Piper comes over sometimes with a few friends of hers and we have drinks.

I plod to my apartment, unlock the door and go to bed. I wake up after 3 hours when I hear some knocking on my door.

I scramble out of bed, my hair look such a mess and I m still haven't changed. My skirt looks messy and shirt is all wrinkled by now.

The person outside has no patience, the door bell starts ringing furiously. Quickly, I fix my skirt and tie my hair in a pony tail and rush to the door.

GODS YOU WONT BELIEVE THIS.

PERCY JACKSON STANDS ON THE DOOR.

MY HEART BEAT STOPS FOR A MOMENT.

" Sorry I am late," he says looking gorgeous without even checking who's at the door.

" Per-" I correct myself," Mr Jackson.. what are you doing here?"

" Miss Ch- Chase," He looks at me in surprise.

 **Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed. Do leave your reviews. Thanks a lot in advance.**


	2. Chapter 2

**DISCLAIMER: NOTHING IS OWNED BY ME. NOTHING.**

 **Annabeth**

" Per-" I correct myself," Mr Jackson.. what are you doing here?"

" Miss Ch- Chase," He looks at me in surprise. All I can see is his beautiful eyes and the expression of confusion on his face.

My stomach does a flip and my heart flutters.

" Yeah," I shrug, trying to ignore my pounding heart.

" I think I am at the wrong address," He pulls out a paper from his pant's back pocket.

" W-what do-does it say?" I ask him stuttering like an idiot.

" Its apartment 202- Wing D," He takes a step back, looking at my apartment number.

And suddenly, I am conscious of my appearance. Man, I look so messy. My hair, my shirt and my skirt. Gosh. And look at him, gorgeous as ever.

" Ummm... Sorry?" I say stupidly. All I wanna do is hide in a closet right now and never get out.

" It says apartment 202."

" 202?" I echo.

" Yup."

" This is 202, that's right."

" Wing D?" Percy asks.

" Wing D is over there," I point right towards the empty hallway.

" There?" He follows my gaze.

' STUPID!' My brain yells loudly.

" Gosh!" I exclaim," I mean the building next to th-this one. This is Wing C."

" Oh! My bad. I didn't check the Wing before entering," He mutters to himself.

" That's a common mistake people tend to make. The society associates need to put a board or something," I manage.

" I am really sorry, Miss Chase. I disturbed you. I can see you were resting. Forgive me." He says sincerely.

" Oka-" I stop, " Mr Jackson, that's okay. It was no problem."

" I really wanted to thank you for today. Thank you so much, you took care of my little one. I am really grateful for that."

" Please don't mention it," I smile.

" She is my everything," He smiles back.

'I KNOW.'

" Thanks Miss Chase," He pulls out some thing from his pocket. Its a card. He hands it to me.

" Crap! I am late," He says as he receives a call.

" Yes Sam. I am almost there," He says in the phone.

" Bye Miss Chase," He turns around to leave, " DO GIVE ME A CALL IF YOU HAVE A PROBLEM WITH YOUR COMPUTER." He shouts looking over his shoulder as he darts off. I am left with a big smiley face for the remaining day.

The chain of activities that happened today, are posing a hindrance to me falling asleep. I am lying on the bed, my eyes open, my thoughts racing. I shut my eyes for a minute and open them again. I can't stop replaying our conversation in my head. On top of it, I acted so dense. I pointed to the hallway telling him Wing D is over there. God knows, how dense you have to be to do that. Gosh ! I wanna face palm me. He must be thinking, I am sooooooooooooo stupid.

The moment I tell my brain to shut up, it has to remind me of how I embarrassed myself today. This is a non stop and never ending cycle.

Was I blushing? No please no. Gods! What if I was? All hope I didn't blush like an idiot in front of him.

But isn't it supposed to happen? Like people blush a lot, get over excited, their hearts pounding a lot louder than usual, stomach flips like crazy when they are around someone they like. Its normal. I don't know why I am acting like a teenager.

It will stop the moment I get over him.

And my appearance. I looked so bad, my hair were sticking out of the pony tail.

' Maybe, he didn't even realise,' The rational part inside my head realises. ' He gave you his card that has his personal number.' It even has its office address on it.

Percy Jackson  
Software Tester  
1023564798 _ **(~THIS IS A FAKE MADE UP NUMBER.~)**_

Maybe I wasn't too bad. I mean He gave me his number. Who gives their number to some one they think is stupid.

Crushing on some one makes you do stupid things. I remember staring at the card for a long while before I realised I am supposed to copy it on my phone and save it. I saved it as Percy first, but, deciding for the better, changed it to Mr Jackson.

I don't know why I am thinking so much about this guy, he was irrelevant till yesterday except for the one time when I thought how would it feel to kiss him, hug him and touch him. I swear it was just once.

Fine, twice.

AAAAAAAAAAh ! Fine !

A few lots times.

But still he never managed to ruin my night sleep. I love my sleeping time and yes, I am going to do that right now.

YOU CAN"T RUIN MY SLEEP. I WON'T ALLOW THAT.

If it wasn't for him, I would have fallen asleep. All these thoughts are irrelevant, forget it, breathe, relax and sleep.

Breathe, relax and sleep.

Breathe, relax and sleep.

Breathe, relax and sleep.

Breathe, relax and sleep.

Breathe, relax and sleep...

 **PERCY**

I dash towards Wing D, after I ran into Miss Chase. That was stupid. I should have checked the Wing before entering. I disturbed her while she was sleeping. All I hope is she didn't mind.

" Percy !" I hear Jason, my co-league, and best friend from work. I whip around to see him jogging towards me.

Jason is the core developer of the company. He has to do all the coding and stuff. He fixes errors and bugs, while my job is just to find if there is a bug. I don't have to fix it. Jason will do that

" Hey dude," I lift a hand

" Man, I was waiting for you at the gate," He waves.

" Sorry I walked into the wrong Wing and had to hurry back," I tell him.

" Come on," He rolls his eyes. " Lets finish up."

I follow him up two floors, simultaneously, ringing at home to make sure Perrie is alright. I hate having to go when she's home alone. Half of my heart is at home. I can't concentrate much. She picks up at the third ring, telling me, its all good and I worry too much. But, she is still too small to understand how hard it is not to be concerned. I may be a little less worried when she is older, but right now, Nope.

It takes me 45 minutes to go through Mr Jin's new software. It has 5 bugs. Jason has noted them down while I was explaining to Mr Jin, why the program was crashing. It's Jason's job to fix the errors now. That could take a time.

" I think I'll need to take it to the office, sir," Jason says after looking at his list. " It could take a while."

" Ah ! I see," Mr Jin says thoughtfully.

" So ... can I?" Jason narrows his eyes.

" Thank you for your time, Mr Grace and Mr Jackson, " Mr Jin says with an approving nod." I'll send it over, first thing, tomorrow morning."

" Okay Sir," Jason says as Mr Jin ushers us out.

We leave his apartment and Jason and I get in my car. I tell him how I ran into Miss Chase as we are on the road. Its getting rather late. 8'o clock. Perrie's alone, plus, its dinner time.

" Miss Chase? Sounds familiar," Jason screws up his face with scepticism.

" She is Perrie's school teacher."

" Oh, " He nods in recognition. " What's her name?"

" I just told you Miss Ch-," I stop mid sentence, realising he means her first name and I don't have any idea about it. " Shit! I don't know."

" Gods Percy," Jason laughs like I have made the biggest joke of the century. " You don't know your daughter's school teacher's name."

" Gosh! How was I supposed to know since Perrie always calls her Miss Chase," I say trying to cover up, even though, it shows how ignorant I have been.

" Kids don't address their teachers by first name," He says as a matter of fact.

" I know that, " I say defiantly.

" Why don't you ask Perrie? She'll know," He smirks.

" NO," I say. " I'll ask Miss Chase, myself the next time I see her," I promise myself.

" Where are we off to for now?"

" Home," I say steering faster. " You can tag along, of course. Perrie loves you. "

" I know. I was just gonna say that," Jason says nonchalantly.

" Cool."

Jason often comes along with me. We have dinner, and after Perrie goes to sleep, we have a few drinks, not on regular basis though. Mostly, we just talk, about almost everything.

My anxious brain is relieved the moment we reached home. It was all peaceful. I unlock the door, to find Perrie in the kitchen drinking water.

" Hey Daddy. Uncle Jay," She runs forward to give Jason a hug.

" How is my beautiful girl doing?" Jason bends on his knees and hugs her, while I start preparation for dinner.

" Very good," Perrie laughs.

I make some salad, rice and pasta. I can't cook much. These are some of a few things I can make, however, and I have tasted them, it was okay.

Jason is playing with Perrie.

" Jason."

" Perrie."

" Come on dinner's ready," I yell from the kitchen, even though they are just a few feet away in the living room.

" COMING," I hear them say in unison and then laugh, cause they both said the same thing.

Dinner is always fun with Jason around. He tells Perrie jokes and keeps her mood up lifted. She loves his company and so do I.

Some times I do think if we would be that happy if Becky was around. We could have been a family. Perrie would have had both her Mum and Dad with her. We could be a complete family. I know she wants her mom too, but she never says. Maybe because of me.

At times I wish if she would say it. Complain and tell me to go bring her from where ever she is.

But she doesn't.

She's too mature for her age.

" Maybe you should hire a baby sitter, dude," Jason says after, we put Perrie to bed and are now doing the dishes.

" No," I gasp in horror." I am not."

" Why?"

" Why? Why because I am not having my kid with a stranger slash some one I barely know."

" Dude relax, I was just suggesting it. Doesn't mean you have to."

" Gods, Jason she's five. I can't. No way."

" Okay okay relax," He says putting a bowl in the dishwasher. " You okay ,though?" He adds hesitantly.

" Yeah, why not?"

" Perrie, told me you were upset last night," Jason shrugs.

" I was just thinking," I shrug.

" About?"

" About life and everything," I say.

" About BECKY," Jason guesses.

" I guess," I nod.

" Percy, listen to me. She left you and your 2 year old daughter. She doesn't want you. She left you when you guys needed her the most. You don't even know where she is," Jason grips my shoulders.

" I know where she is. I just wish she would come back, if not for me, for her," I say thinking about Perrie.

" She is not going to," Jason shakes his head. " Where is she?"

" London."

" Dude, she doesn't wanna come back. She doesn't care, why don't you get it?"

" I loved her. She was the only one I truly loved."

" She doesn't love you and neither Perrie. If she did, wouldn't she come to see her own daughter for about more than once a year. She only sees you both once every new year. I don't know why does she even do that," He says with disdain.

" Maybe because she does love her."

" No I know, she doesn't," Jason snorts with laughter.

How can he say that? What does he even know? I am sorry but he has no right to say that.

" What? What do you even know?" I explode releasing my shoulders from his grip. " You know why she left? Do you? It was because of me. I made her leave. It was my fault that she left. I am the reason Perrie doesn't have a complete family."

" NO NO Percy. You didn't do anything. She just wanted to get rid of you both. She was just looking for a reason to leave. She never wanted to stay."

" No," I say taken aback. " She didn't."

" Mark my words, she is not coming back and she never truly loved you."

I am speechless.

" You need to let go now. Its been 3 years. How long are you gonna keep waiting for that light in the darkness, when have lost the matchsticks to light your candle."

" I am not waitin-"

" Why haven't you moved on then?" He asks bluntly.

I shrug.

" Its time to move on now, mate. Try to forget her."

" Its hard."

I do love her still...

 **ANNABETH**

Last night, sucked, after a lot of self pep talk, I managed to calm down myself and went to bed. I hope it doesn't happen again, I really do. This is becoming the craziest crush I have ever had.

School is hectic as always, running around every where, after kids, to complete daily tasks but, I love it. Perrie told me her Daddy loved the drawing. She had a gleeful expression on her face. ' He said he is going to frame it.' is what she told me and he was smiling a lot after that.

I kinda do like his smile. Its heart stopping, gives me a little flutter. Hearing about that just made my day.

Gosh! I'll be going crazy.

 **HI EVERYONE WHO IS READING. Thanks for reading. Thank you for the reviews, follows and favs.**

 **THANKS ALOT.**

 **Thanks to Fratzy and Guest who left awesome reviews. Hope you guys enjoy this one too.**


	3. Chapter 3

**I don't own Anything you know or recognise.**

 **ANNABETH**

I have been dreading this day. I am gonna make a fool of myself again. I shouldn't have talked to Piper. She has increased my anxiety level from 10 to like 200.

Today we have the parents and teacher meet. It happens every 6 months. The kids are gonna come in any moment, and their parents will start coming around 12 pm. First, we have 3 hours of class and then, we have the meet in the order parents start arriving, after seeing the teacher parents leave with their kid.

I was perfectly fine, till, like, 45 minutes ago. Now, I am worried and uneasy. Piper brought it up. She- I m gonna kill her later if I did something stupid.

" Annabeth? I hope you are excited!" She laughed.

" For?" I said.

" You get to talk to Percy again!" She emphasised _Percy_.

" Shit!" I rubbed my head. " That's barbaric. I can't. I am gonna stutter like an idiot again."

" No you wont," She picked up her phone and slipped it in her bag.

" OH DUH! I will," I repeated. " You know what I did last time, I saw him."

" Yeah, umm... you did tell me."

I had told her what I did around a month ago, when Percy Jackson, accidently, knocked on my door. She had laughed at me. And I wanted to sink, and drown and die.

" I m gonna tell him something like- for instance, the teacher is over there while I point to the wall or the door."

" W- why would you d-do that?" She burst into laughter.

" I don't know. I mean, look at his face. And those eyes, gaze in them once, and get lost forever."

" Stop. He's not that great," She lifted a hand. I made a face at her and walked out.

Now here I am, pacing up and down in my class room.

The same will happen today too. I had managed last time, though. I avoided seeing/talking to him. When it was Perrie's turn, I left to go see the principal for some task(intentionally) and didn't return till they had left.(I heard, Fred had taken care of them.) I can't repeat the same this time now. What will I doooooo?

My thoughts are put to rest, the moment kids start entering. I stop pacing around, and sit down on my chair.

" Relax Annabeth, you'll be fine," I close my eyes for a moment and tell myself.

" Good Morning Miss Chase," A few kids greet as they enter. I smile and greet them back. In a few moments, almost everyone has arrived and settled down.

Three hours of class pass by quickly. We continue with Maths and English. Maths is where most kids face problem in higher classes, so we make sure they do it properly now. If the base is strong, the building will be too. Fun fact is that I love maths, so teaching maths is euphoric for me.

And as the clock strikes 12, I greet the first set of parents. It always starts with ' Welcome Mr and Mrs their surname' and ends with 'Bye Mr and Mrs their surname'. Sometimes, they thank me some times, they don't. Some are in a hurry while others have got all the time in the world. I talk to them one by one about their child's performance and behaviour at school. Time goes by, as, I keep meeting parents. I have 25 children in this class. It takes about 4 hours by maximum.

This day is the longest day in the history of my job. I feel tired already and a lots of kids are still left. The kids are leaving with their parents. The strength of the room is reducing. The plus point is if I mess up, not many people there to see. That's a relief.

Perrie's dad is not here yet. Its 3 pm.

I have met now all the parents and everyone has left.

Mr Jackson's not here yet. Its 4 pm. Does he not remember?

" Miss Chase, why is daddy not here yet?" Perrie turns to me.

" There's got to be a reason, I am sure, lets wait up."

" OK," She says softly.

Its 4:30 and still no sign of him.

" Miss Chase. I want to go home," Perrie stands up from her chair and walks up to me.

I bite my lip before, I consider ringing Percy Jackson.

" Alright I'll do it," I flip out my phone.

I dial his number. NO Answer. I call 3 times, still no answer.

" He's not picking up," I say after a pause.

" Oh!" Perrie says disappointed. We can't stay here for another hour. School will close at 5. Its only 25 minutes remaining. I can't even take her to my place because his dad won't know where to find her. There is very low chance he would call back an unknown number.

" Come on. Lets take you home," I stand up from my chair, pack my stuff and lock the class room. Perrie and I drop the key at the Office and get on road. I take her hand and we start walking, as she gives me directions.

Perrie looks sad.

" Did he forget about me?" She asks suddenly.

" No of course not. No, Perrie, he must be caught up with his boss and dying to come to get you," I grasp her hand tighter.

" I hope so," She says with a nod.

We walk 40 blocks to reach Perrie's house. I take a look at it. It's not very big and neither very small. I can tell from the outside, it has like 2 rooms and a porch and probably one living and dining room.

" Do you have the key?" I ask Perrie.

" No, Daddy says I'll lose it." She shakes her head.

" Should we wait outside?"

" Miss Dare has a spare key."

" Who's that?"

" Miss Dare is daddy's childhood friend. She lives nearby. I could run and get the key."

" Where does she live?"

" Come!" Perrie walks forward. I follow her about 20 feet to a big mansion.

WOW! THIS IS HUGE.

I ring the door bell. A lady with a warm smile, opens the door.

" Mrs Vin, can I get the key?" Perrie asks her as the lady ushers us inside. She works for Miss Dare probably.

The lady nods and walks towards a room with a closed door.

I wait along with Perrie until Mrs Vin comes back holding a bunch of keys. She looks through it, stops at one key and hands it to Perrie.

" Thank you Mrs Vin. Tell Miss Dare, daddy and I said hello," Perrie says brightly. The polite lady nods and we get out of the house. Its getting dark.

" Mrs Vin, doesn't she talk?" I ask Perrie as I m walking beside her.

" She can't," Perrie looks at me.

" Okay," I nod two times.

" Miss Dare hired her after daddy told her he couldn't see her jobless and homeless. Mrs Vin's sons do not care for her and her husband needs medical attention. She needs a job, so Miss Dare said, ' She needs a job, I need a helper.' And bing she hired her," Perrie explains.

" Wow!" I am astounded.

" Yeah Miss Dare she's nice. Comes over a lot."

We unlock Perrie's house, and, step inside. Just as I said before, it does have 2 rooms, one living room and a kitchen. I was right.

" She fancies daddy," Perrie giggles. My attention is piqued.

" A-and he?" I hesitate before asking.

" He," Perrie puts down her bag on the living room table, " never notices. Miss Dare is just too obvious. I can see it. "

Lord! I hope I am not.

" She's cute by the way," Perrie adds before leaving for the kitchen.

Okay, so he doesn't have a girlfriend. Just makes me happy to know that.

I can't leave Perrie alone here now. I call Mr Jackson again. This time he does pick up.

" Hello?" I say loudly because I hear some harsh background noise, like some machines.

" Sorry, I gotta run," He hangs up.

What's he upto?

I call the school and make sure, they tell the watchman, if a guy comes around, looking for his daughter to tell him, ' She is home and safe.' I scan the house to look for any photos of Perrie's mum, but, the only ones I see have Perrie and her dad, at the beach, at his office and one has a middle aged woman and Perrie sitting on her lap. That would be Mrs Jackson, Percy's mother.

Not 10 minutes later, I see a car pulling up and a guy running inside.

" I am so sorry. Really sorry. Didn't know how I forgot. I didn't mean to."

" Mr Jackson, Perrie is fine."

" Oh my god Miss Chase. Thank you, you brought her home. Where's she?" He notices me standing.

" In the kitchen," I point to the kitchen.

He dashes towards the kitchen.

" Daddy's really sorry, Perrie." I can hear him saying.

" I am fine daddy," Perrie assures him.

" Didn't mean to. I was caught up with some work. I-"

" Its okay, daddy."

I take this as my cue to leave.

When I am half way out, I feel some one grab my arm. I turn to see Perrie holding my arm and Percy standing behind about 5 feet.

" Miss Chase thank you," Perrie says and darts back inside.

" Miss Chase... you... umm... called me?" Percy says pulling out his phone from his pants pocket and showing me.

" Y- Yup, that's my number," I smile.

" So? What... umm... I was gonna save it. What-"

" Annabeth. I am Annabeth Chase," I cut him off, making it less awkward for him.

" That's a pretty name," He saves my number.

" Thank you," My cheeks flush red.

" I am Percy."

" I know."

" You should stay for Dinner."

He did not. Should I? No. I'll make an excuse and leave.

" No Mr Jackson I can't-"

" Please I insist," He smiles.

" Please."

" I well... alright," I follow him inside.

That's an awesome day. Dinner with your crush and his daughter. My heart is hammering already.

Over dinner, Perrie won't stop talking. Her chatter's too cute. I can imagine how happy they are together. And Percy won't stop taking about how thankful he is to me. He's thanked me like 15 times already.

" I should be leaving now. Thank you for the food Mr Jackson," I say after Percy has put Perrie to bed.

" Call me Percy, Miss Chase."

" Same goes for you."

" OK...Annabeth. Do you like coffee?"

" Yeah."

" Great," Percy picks up two mugs. " People say I make good coffee."

" Fine," I chuckle and sit back down.

I watch as he picks up a pan and pours water in it. He stirs the coffee grounds right into the water. I stand up feeling stupid, just staring, so I clean the mugs by that time.

He has boiled the coffee and stir it. In five minutes, coffee is ready. I take the coffee, transfer it in the mugs and hand one to him.

" Thanks," I say sipping the coffee.

" I am the one who is grateful to you and I will be forever."

" You've thanked me like 25 times already, Percy."

" It's never enough," Percy smiles.

" Don't mention it please, I know what she means to you." I take a long swig of the coffee, " By the way, this is really good."

" I know," He has a smug expression on his face.

" You are a good dad Percy," I say. " Perrie loves you a lot. "

" I can be irresponsible some times," Percy says quietly. " I don't want her to think of me as a unconcerned, nonchalant guy."

" She doesn't. She admires you. Managing a kid, a job and doing all household chores at 23 is quite remarkable. I mean, I could never."

" You are 23 too?"

" 25. Last month."

" We are around one year apart but, wait how do you kno-"

" Perrie told me, " I place the mug down and put up my hands in defence before he can suspect me of stalking.

" Does she... umm...talk about me?"

" All the time, " I pick up the mug again.

" Wow."

" Can I... Ask you something?" I say hesitantly.

" Ofcourse, " He smiles and there goes my stomach flipping.

" Perrie's mum-"

" She doesn't live with us anynore," Percy cuts me off. " Left when we were quite young."

" Oh," I can see he doesn't want to continue the topic.

" Okay enough about me. Tell me... okay...about your boyfriend," He looks delighted.

" I don't have a boyfriend," The truth flows out of my system before I can even think what to answer.

" Whoa! Not even a crush?"

" Well yeah I have liked this guy for a while now-" I hear myself saying.

" How long?"

" 11 months," I say putting down the empty mug.

" Where's he now?" Percy asks,eyes fixated at me.

" Dunno! Probably somewhere having coffee, I guess," I shrug.

" Does he not like you?"

" Nope," I say amused. " He's a busy guy. He doesn't notice."

" He'd be an idiot for not noticing a beautiful soul like you," Percy scowls.

*** Skip***

Since that day, I have been great friends with Percy. He says hi to me every time we have met since the past two weeks. I got invited to Percy's birthday party which is next week. He also introduced me to his childhood friend Rachel. Poor girl, she is head over heels for him. I also met Grover and Leo. On the other side, I introduced them to my friend Piper. Piper got well along with Leo.

Long story short, I am friends with Percy Jackson now. I am going to his 24th birthday party and Perrie's super happy about it.

There are only two problems with the situation

1\. I don't know what to get him

2\. My crush is getting bigger and bigger.(This better stop.)

 **HI Every one who is reading. Thank you for your time.**

 **Thanks for your follows, favs and reviews.**

 **Thanks a lot SpartanBoy, Fratzy, OverLordRevan and nihal27 for your amazing feedback. I hope you all are enjoying the story and like this one too.**


	4. Chapter 4

**DISCLAIMER: I donot own anything. Nothing at all.**

 **PERCY**

It's 18th of August today. My birthday. I am 24. My friends are throwing me a birthday party, which will be hosted by my mother and step-father, who are going to be here any moment.

The past three weeks have been pretty good for me. I've got a new best friend, my daughter's school teacher, Annabeth. It's kind of amusing just a few weeks ago I didn't even know her name. She comes over in the evenings, almost everyday and we talk after Perrie goes to bed. Sometimes, when she doesn't come I call her or she calls me.

She told me about herself. She's approximately one year older to me. July 12th is her birthday. Grey is her color. She always wanted to be a school teacher, since she was like 12. She has 2 degrees( names of which I forgot. , of course a bachelors and masters). She likes the color of my eyes. Annabeth has a few friends who come over for drinks sometimes at her place. Her mother and father are not together anymore. Her dad had another marriage and she has 2 step brothers in high school. Her mother doesn't interfere a lot in her life, she's a busy/famous architect company CEO. Her dad is a professor and step mom is a home maker. Derek is the guy, her step mom's trying to set her up with.

Anyway, enough about her, mom's going to be here any moment. I need to prep everything. Food's done, cleaned the house, did the laundry, dishes are a check, now I gotta go wake up Perrie for school.

I walk towards the bedroom, swing open the door and walk in.

She's not on the bed.

Where'd she go at this time?

I knock at the washroom door.

No response.

" Perrie? Where are you, kiddie?" I ask, knocking hard.

No reply.

" Hey Daddy," I hear her voice from behind me, which makes me jump a little. I turn around to see her, standing behind me holding a small blue wrapped box.

" Whoa!" I manage. " Where were you?"

" Right here," She points to the side by the bed.

" Were you hiding?" I stoop down.

" Yes," Perrie grins.

" Why, may I ask?" I question, bewildered.

" I was wrapping your present, daddy. Happy Birthday to you," Perrie sings for me.

" Wow, that's so sweet, thank you so much Per," I pull her into a hug.

" Aren't you going to open it?"

" You want me to?"

She nods, smiling broadly.

" Okay," I start tearing off the gift wrap. I unwrap it to reveal a T-shirt, folded neat and clean.

I take it out, it says ' Best Daddy of the world' and wait.. is that my picture at the back.

" Oh wow! Perrie, How did you? Thank you so much," I look at her, smiling brightly.

" You're welcome Daddy," Perrie says beaming.

" Wait, but how did you? Where'd you get the money for this?"

" I saved some from my Christmas allowance, new years and thanksgiving too."

" How much exactly did you spend?" I ask surprised. I didn't have no idea she was saving money.

" Daddy," Perrie pauses. " Does I ever ask you how much you spend buying me gifts, taking care of me, buying me useless stuff I want but, I never use more than once?"

" No," I swallow. " And it's do I."

" So, should you?"

My daughter is more mature and understanding than I had imagined she was.

" No," I say nodding. " This is the best gift ever, thank you so much. I love you."

" I love you too daddy."

" You hungry?" I stand up and extend my hand out to her.

" Yes," She takes my hand.

We have some breakfast, after that Perrie leaves to take a bath, I get her clothes ready before she's back and pack her lunch box, stuff it in her bag. I don't usually drop her to school, she goes by bus in the morning and I pick her up in the after noon. Her bus must be arriving, it's almost time.

~ Ring~

" Hello?" I answer my phone.

" Unlock the door," My step dad says, on the phone.

They're here. They always visit us on my birthday, some times Thanksgiving and Christmas. Its like a family reunion. Feels good to see my parents today.

' Also, Today is the day I miss _her_ the most.' Shaking off, that thought I move towards the door.

My mom and step dad are waiting by the entrance. They both engulf me in a group hug and wish me HAPPY BIRTHDAY. I usher them inside and put their suitcases in my room, while they make themselves comfortable in the dining room.

Perrie's ready and taking to them both, when I come out.

" How long are you staying here, Grammie?" Perrie is asking her.

" Well... I dunno. How long do you want us to?" Mom is saying.

" Forever," Perrie answers without wasting another second.

" Okay," Paul and Mom laugh.

" Your bus is here," I remind Perrie. " Come on."

" Bye Grammie and Granpa," Perrie waves at them.

" Bye dear," Mom says and I accompany her outside. In a few seconds, the bus arrives and Perrie gets on.

 **ANNABETH**

I am in love. With him. I don't know, but it happened. I find myelf often thinking of him. About him. Whenever I get a text, or a call I am hoping its him.

~ Ping ~

Its a text from him. My heart skips a bear, as I open to reply.

' Whatchu doing?'

' Getting ready for school. And you?'

' Just sent Perrie to school. Mom and Dad are here. Leaving for Office. See you in the evening.'

' That's great. Yes I'll see you. Leaving for school now.'

Telling each other everything, has become a part of our lives. It has become more of a habit. It starts from what you are doing, what you did during the day to talking at night about what are your views on this or that.

I think we are best friends now.

Maybe I fell in love, but, I donot expect anything more from him.

Piper and I are going to Percy's birthday party.

Day at school, just flew by me. It was quick as a fox. Today we had Drawing, Maths(my favourite), English and Home Science class, plus it being Friday means One hour early off for us.

 **~ Evening~**

Now I am waiting for Piper to arrive at my place, so we can leave for the party. I am wearing a long black flowy dress, with thin straps, my 4 inch long black heels and I let my hair down. I rang her about 30 minutes earlier, when she said she'd be here in 5 minutes. I roll my eyes at myself for believing that white lie.

I should call her again and if she doesn't answer I am going to leave by myself. It's getting late. We are 40 minutes late already.

I call her 3 times again, result being no answer. I gather up my stuff, and step outside.

I wait for the elevator, by pressing the button. Its down right now. Coming right up now. Good.

The door of the elevator opens and I see Piper standing inside.

" Oh so you decided to show up?" I say with sarcasm dripping, out of my voice.

" I am sorry, Beth," She says apologetically. " Aren't you coming?"

" Hmmm," I step inside.

" Looking good," She stares at me.

" Yup, I know. You look fine too," I say coolly.

" Ah! Come on, how long are you gonna be mad?" She pushes the ground floor button.

" I was waiting for 40 minutes, and I called you 4 times. Do you even check your phone?" I say crossing my arms.

" I am so sooooooooooory! Please, my dear Annie, Don't be mad, please."

" AHH!," I huff. " Fine."

" YAYY, thanks. Lets go. I'll drive," Piper says thrilled.

It takes us 15 minutes to reach Percy's house by car. I am a little nervous. I haven't been to a birthday party in ages. Plus, when you like(love) him, it's a whole new level of nervousness. The house looks just the same from outside, as it is when I am here everyday. I don't hear no music.

We walk in and are greeted by a woman, that's Sally Jackson. I remember her from the photographs I have seen.

" Hello dear," She says to both of us.

" Hello," Piper says brightly.

" Hello Mrs Jackson," I say.

" And you are? I haven't seen you both around before."

" I am Piper Mclean and that's Annabeth."

" Nice to meet you, Piper Mclean," She says to her. " And Annabeth," She nods to me.

" Mom," I hear the voice that gives me butterflies in my stomach.

" Mom," Percy interrupts us, appearing out in the hallway. " Let them come inside." He's wearing a V-neck white T-shirt with regular patched denim jeans and grey ankle high boots. He's looks so perfect.

" Yeah sorry," Mrs Jackson looks at us with a small smile. " Come on, girls." I can hear faint music from inside.

We place our presents on the table where we see a stack of them. There are in total 5 of them. There's about 10 people aside from us in the party. I can place names to a few of the faces. There's Jason, Leo, Grover, Percy's step dad- Paul and Rachel Dare(That woman is sure as hell classy.) and oooh, Mrs Vin is here too. I don't know about the remaining of them.

Percy and Perrie were talking in the corner. He catches me staring and beams at me. I smile back. There is food and drinks near the kitchen. People are scattered around taking amongst each other. Piper left 2 minutes ago, to get a drink with Sally.

" Miss Chase," Some one taps me on the shoulder. I turn to see Jason Grace standing behind me.

" Hi," I say. " Call me Annabeth."

" Okay Annabeth," He looks over towards Piper." Care to introduce me to your friend? She's cute."

" Piper," I say, amused." Sure. Come along."

" Piper meet Jason," I say as I approach her. " He's a friend of Mr Jackson."

" Best Friend," Jason corrects.

" Yeah best friend," I roll my eyes.

" Hi Jason," Piper puts down her glass and shakes hands with him. " So, what do you do?"

" I am a software developer. I develop software for apps, basically, write code, edit it and present it to Mr Jackson for testing it. And what about you?"

" I am a ..."

I walk away and leave them to talking, giving them alone time. I wander about the place looking around the house. Rachel is in a major argument with some guy, I don't know his name.

I think I was looking at them with a bit too much interest when I hear a whisper, " That's Rafael, Rachel's boyfriend." Percy is standing by my side.

" Rachel's boyfriend?" I echo.

" What's so astounding about that?" Percy says, looking at me.

How come she has a boyfriend? But, she's in love with Percy. She's got me confused now. Anyhow, looking at them doesn't look like she loves that guy. Her eyes don't shine when she talks to him, like when they do when she talks to Percy. In fact, they are arguing. And it looks bad. We can't hear them over the music.

" I just didn't know about him," I say waving off my hand casually.

" I am actually so happy you are here," Percy says with a heart stopping smile.

' I love you.'

" Hey, come on I wanna introduce you to my parents," He grabs my hand. I feel a stomach flip and heart beat jump.

" I already-"

" No excuses," He cuts me off.

Fine. I give up.

" Mom Paul," Percy calls his mom and step-dad. " Meet my new best friend. Annabeth Chase. She's also Perrie's school teacher."

" Hello dear, we've met," Sally says remembering it.

" Hi Annabeth," Paul shakes my hand.

I talk to them for a while, I tell them about Perrie and how we met. Perrie comes over too. She's too attached to her Grammie and Granpa.

" Lets cut your cake now, Percy."

" Mom," Percy whines. " I am 24, you see."

" Come on daddy," Perrie encourages him by extending her hand.

" Okay," He takes her hand. " Only for you."

We move towards the centre table, where the cake has been put by Paul. I can't help but notice, the cake's blue. I know Percy loves blue, at the same time, this is a bit crazy. Just a slight bit.

Perrie blows the candles after Percy has complained 5 times that he is too old for that. They both cut the cake together. Mrs Vin comes over and takes away the cake to cut it into small pieces for everyone to have a taste. We have tasty food prepared by Sally and Mrs Vin as I learnt after eating.

I notice Jason and Piper lost in each other's eyes, whilst, Rachel and her boyfriend Rafael look fine too. Percy and Perrie are eating like there's no tomorrow. Leo is taking to Grover and Sally and Paul have done eating and are busy cleaning up.

After that we have a small round of games and dancing. Piper dances with Jason happily smiling. Bet you, they've even exchanged numbers. I wanna dance too, but not alone. With him would be nice.

" Annabeth come along," Paul and Sally are calling me to dance with them. I can't help but smile at that sweet gesture. I dance with them, softly.

" You are my favourite girl in the whole world," I hear Percy saying to Perrie.

" And you are the best daddy in the world," Perrie says. I look towards them, Percy has lifted up Perrie and has one arm holding her, while his other hand holds one of Perrie's hand. He's swinging around with her and she's laughing. They're totally the perfect father-daughter duo.

I wanna dance with him too. Oh, I wish.

" Go on. Just ask him," Paul winks.

" No," I mouth at him. It's kind of embarrassing that I got caught, well atleast it wasn't Percy, just his parents.

He gives me a look that says ' Just-do-it-already-girl'.

"Fine," I mouth again, making up my mind.

I walk over to the father and daughter duo, with continuous hammering going on in my heart.

I can do it.

'But, you haven't ever before', my brain says.

' There has to be a first time,' I argue with it.

I'll do it.

Percy puts Perrie down upon seeing me approach.

" Daddy I'll be with Grammie now," Perrie runs off towards Sally. He nods at her.

" Hey, Annabeth. I was just gonna ask you to dance, do you wanna?" Percy asks me.

" Love to," I say with a smile.

Yay, I did it. Well, technically, I didn't. But, I got to dance with the guy I love. I may have accidently, stepped on his foot, but, it was an accident. I was nervous, who wouldn't be?

I glance at the watch. It's 11:30 p.m. Time to leave.

People are leaving, Rachel and Rafael have left already. Perrie has gone to bed. Sally and Paul left for bed too. Now its just us 6, Percy, Leo, Grover, Jason, Piper and I.

" Piper," I whisper. " We should leave."

" So early," She complains.

" But you didn't even wanna come in the first place."

" How was I supposed to know I was gonna meet," She jerks her head slightly towards Jason. " All thanks to you. He's so cute. We're going out Saturday night."

" Wait... Isn't that tomorrow?"

" Yes," Piper says with enthusiasm. " I don't waste time."

Leo and Grover are leaving now.

I think we'll leave now.

" We're going and Grover left too. Piper come on," I pull Piper up.

" Can I do the honours please?" Jason asks Piper.

" Please Annabeth,"She looks at me.

" What about me then? You are my ride," I ask her.

" You can take the car," She hands me the car keys.

" Fine, you go with Jason. I'll go by myself," I tell her.

" Thanks Annabeth. You are the best," She gives me a hug me and leaves with Jason.

I'll just go to Percy, say goodbye and leave.

I walk up to him. He smiles at me, and suddenly, fishes out his phone feeling a vibration. He looks at it, his smile falters. And he balls his fists, but remembers I am still standing there. He loosens up, ignores his phone, with a little extra force puts it down and smiles again, as if nothing happened.

" What's it?" I ask.

" Nothing," He brushes me off.

" Why'd you get upset?"

" I am not upset," He says, grinning.

I can see he's lying.

" Is it Becky?" I summon the courage to ask.

I know when ever I ask him about her, he gets upset or walks away without finishing the conversation.

" Y-yes," Percy manages.

" You can tell me," I put my hand on his arm.

" Not today," Percy's face looks like he's gonna cry if I pressed more.

" Okay, you can when you want to or not if you don't wanna," I say softly, assuring him I'll be there to listen.

" Come on, I'll drop you home."

" No I have Piper's car," I show him the keys.

" I'll drive you, " He pleads. " I wanna take my mind off her."

" Alright if it helps," I give him the keys. He puts it down and fetches his car keys.

" No we'll go in my car," Percy gets up and I follow him outside. " You can pick it up tomorrow."

" I'll do it," I say with a hint of a smile.

I get in Percy's car and he starts driving. I look at his eyes. They look moist.

" Hey, are you okay?" I ask.

" Yeah," He doesn't look at me.

" Are you crying?"

It hurts my heart to see him that way. Its just too painful.

" No," Percy says defiantly.

" You don't cry on your birthday."

" It's over now."

" No, " I show him the time on my watch. " We still have one minute."

He half smiles.

" And to clarify, I wasn't crying."

" Okay sir," I put up my hands.

He laughs looking at that. " You are amazing , Annabeth."

" Hah! I know," I laugh. I made him smile...

We talk like everyday again and he drops me home.

I do wanna know what happened with Becky and I think he still loves her. Why did she leave him? When he loves her so strong.

 **A/N: HI readers! Thanks for reading. Hope you had a nice time reading. Thanks a lot.**

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 **Thanks to** **King of Heroes Gilgamesh, Here's your chapter. Enjoy.**

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	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: I don't own anything you recognise.**

 **P **ERCY****

 **3:03 P.M.**

20th September

List of things to do today:

1\. Clean the closet.  
2.

What else do I got? Umm... I can't think of anything right now. Maybe, that's all I got for now. I guess, that's it.

I neeeeeed to clean my closet. Its so messy. I couldn't even find my socks, today morning. It was all fine till the days mom was here. It's been about two days since my parents left for home.

The past month was a blessing. My work was reduced to one third and I had some time with my parents. My mom and step-dad did a lot of tasks, which I do everyday, lessening my work and we had amazing family time. Perrie was so happy with her Grandma, and pa too. I mean, it was a fun month.

Jason got a girlfriend, Piper. They've been going strong till now. He met her on my birthday party. They are like perfect for each other.

Annabeth had dinner with my family for almost the entire month. I've got to know her so much more better. She is a just great and an awesome friend.

At this time, usually, I go to pick Perrie up from school, but, today here I am in the office sitting on a round table, scratching my head thinking of what to do.

So, the thing is that, I take my lunch break at 3, when Perrie gets off from school, so that I am able to pick her up plus have lunch with her. The school decided to take the kids to amusement park today, for a one day trip sort of thing. So, I don't have to go anywhere, just be here. I've had my lunch already. Sam says I can relax for another half an hour, even though I wasn't paying full attention in the meeting, which happened on this very table I am sitting.

I won't lie by saying, I am not worried. If the truth be told, I am very anxious. Its the first time my daughter has gone anywhere alone without me, in a very long time. It disturbs me when I think something could happen, knowing that I had almost lost her once, before. That day was my fault. I don't wanna, no I mean I can't blame anyone, but me.

I don't want to have negative thoughts, but it's kind of not possible not to. But, I shouldn't of course. Be positive, she's out there, having fun with her friends, enjoying the rides, eating and dancing. Plus, they have like 4 teachers with them, including Annabeth and Piper. So, I shouldn't be fearful.

I already called Annabeth three times in a row, 1 hour ago. I don't feel like doing it again. I could text her, though. Great idea. I just hope she doesn't think I'm going crazy.

' Hey! How's it going?'

That should be fine. I hit send.

I'll finish my list by the time, I wait for the reply.

1\. Clean the closet.  
2\. Yeah! The Groceries. I need to buy them.

Annabeth gifted me this small dairy on my birthday, cause she was sick of me hanging up the phone on her saying,' Crap! I forgot to do that. I'll call you back in 15.'

So, she said I should make a list of what is left to be done, everyday, so I won't forget anything.

That's actually so sweet. It's been very useful so far.

I feel my phone vibrate, I unlock it to see Annabeth's reply.

' All's good. Kids are having fun. Just don't worry, Perrie is all right. Focus on your work.'

' You know me too well. Thanks for everything. :)' I send back.

I am kind of relieved, but not totally tension free.

' Just breathe. I'll take care of her.' I see another reply from her.

I wish I could thank you enough, Annabeth. You've helped me so much.

' :)' I send back.

" September-" I say to myself.

" What about September?" My friend, Jason Grace startles me.

" September. September is the ninth month of the year, according to Julian and Gregorian calendars. It's one of the four months with a length of 30 days. And, September in Northern Hemisphere is the season equivalent to March in Southern Hemisphere."

" Okay," Jason says making a face. " Why are we discussing September?"

" Because," I clench my fists lightly, and open them out in frustration a second later. " I don't know what to do. I am feeling antsy."

" Why?" He leans by my chair.

" I dunno. Perrie," I say sceptically. " She's-"

" God! I knew it. I know. I know, you are worried to death as if some thing's gonna happen to her. Come on, man. She's with her school friends and her teachers, Annabeth and Piper. She'll be fine. You need to stop being worried for every damn thing."

" It's not small thing. You remember what happened last time, I left her without me, " I say gravely. " You don't understand. It still bites me, how could I do that?"

" I hope you do recall, " Jason sits down next to me. " what happened was years ago. Perrie was just 6 months old. She couldn't call anyone. She couldn't take care of herself back then. She'll be fine."

" I just texted Annabeth, she says all's good. But still, I can't help it," I say looking at him.

" Just trust me. Nothing will happen. And, you managed 5 hours already. It's only 4 hours more. She'll be back by 7," He glances at his watch and then, texts on his phone.

" Yeah," I shrug. " You are right, I guess."

" Come on, lets distract you," Jason stands up. " Stand up, you lazy person."

" Hey," I retort. " I am not lazy." I stand up.

" Lets go get Pizza, " He walks ahead of me.

" But, I had lunch already."

" Can you resist a Pizza?" Jason looks back at me and winks.

" Fine," I ponder for a moment. " That's not something I can do."

 **Annabeth**

" That would be fun right?" Piper asks me looking at the giant roller coaster.

" Not for the kids, no way Piper, " I say shaking my head.

" Not the kids silly, for us."

" What?" My eyes open up wide in surprise. " We are supposed to watch the kids."

" We are doing that, aren't we?" Piper says after a pause.

" We are. But, there are like 75 of them and just 4 of us," I remind her.

" Girl," Piper points her index at me. " I ain't leaving till I ride that one."

" Okay," I give in. " But, only when kids are at lunch and Fred and Bran watch them like hawks. Go tell them both."

Today, we are at the ' Amusement Park of NY ' from the school as a part of a one day trip. 25 students each from 3 classes are here, with 4 teachers that is, Piper, Fred, Bran and me. We've been here for 3 hours now.

Kids are enjoying on rides. They were so thrilled about this trip.

Though its fun for them but it's hard to watch each child. Plus, they are just 5. They can't be left all by themselves. I am counting them after every hour. They aren't allowed on big rides, just small ones and no water ones.

After the rides, we take them to dinosaur park, then they have lunch in the cafeteria and lastly, dancing. The three school buses we came in,will take them back to school from where the parents pick them up at 7. That's the schedule. Everything has been according to plan till now.

This park is divided into 4 sections: the rides, the water rides, cafeterias and food courts and section four is the dinosaur park, where we are proceeding to now. The kids walk in a line, and teachers walk along making sure everything is alright and maintain decorum too.

We see exhibits of Tyrannosaurs, Sauropods, Ceratopsians, Raptors, Theropods , Titanosaurs and many more.

The park guide is explaining the kids about these dinosaurs. There's an ecstatic environment here.

" Miss Chase," Melisa walks parallel to me. " Why aren't we taught this at school?"

" Oh you like that?" I ask.

" Yes," She nods.

" Anybody else?" I say loudly.

" Yeah, me too," Greg says and a few other kids join.

" Alright then," I smile. " I'll talk to the other teachers about it. We'll make sure you have a class on it, atleast one day of the week."

" Thanks Miss Chase," Greg, Melisa and a few kids chorus.

At 1:30 we take the kids to food courts. No food court is big enough to accommodate 75 kids, so they go in groups of 25 while others wait. We could have sent them to other cafeterias, but then, it wouldn't be possible to keep count.

" Annabeth," Piper taps my forearm in a quick motion. " Let's go now, before eating. I don't wanna you know-"

Crap.

" Yeah," I lift my hand. " No need to explain. I get it. "

" Come on then, what are you waiting for?"

" You sure about this?"

" Of course, move, get up."

" Oookay," I say looking around once. " We need to be back soon."

We get in the line for the giant roller coaster. Thankfully, it aint that long as I had expected it was gonna be. I slip my phone in my skirt pocket after speaking to my Dad and Step mom.

" How're they doing?" Piper asks me after I put my phone is. I have noticed she's busy texting her new boyfriend, Jason like almost all the time. They hit it off really well at Percy's party. I'd say they make a cute pair.

" Pretty good," I say brightly. She nods and we move forward. We put our bags on the side before getting on the roller coaster.

Now, that I get a closer look I can see it's quite daunting of a ride. Firstly, the path is plain for like 7-8 metres, then comes the sudden way up to a high peak, where it goes up steering way for the downfall. The path down is the one that scares me the most. Going up is all fine, and then just as it starts backing down there's this jump in your heart, which you can't explain. I'd rather not try. Then, it goes on forever, for a linear path which is slanting to one side and then its up and down and more down and up. The ride goes on for 3- 4 minutes I'd guess.

" Our turn," Piper squeals as we are in our seats on the ride. We put on seat belts and so does everyone else. There are about 20 people on it and a lot of youngsters, so I bet you there's gonna be lots of yelling.

And so after 2 minutes, the ride begins and so does the shouting.

" Wooooooooooooohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo," is all what I can hear.

We go straight, up and down and sideways and more, holding on to the steel rod with both our hands. The ride was joyful and my head's spinning.

" That was good right?" Piper looks at me beaming.

" Sure," I mutter. " Only my head, won't stop spinning."

" I need to use the washroom," Piper turns left and proceeds in that direction.

~ Vibrates Vibrates Vibrates~

That's my phone. I pull it out.

It's Percy. I gotta take that.

" Hello?" I answer.

" Hey. Annabeth, everything's going good?" My heart does that natural jump as it always does when he talks to me, even if it's on the phone or a message.

" Yeah. Sure," I nod.

" Co-"

The phone disconnects.

He calls again, after a minute. I pick up.

" Yeah sorry, low signal here," I manage.

" No problem," He says. " Perrie?"

" Yeah, she's okay. Everyone's okay. Listen, can I call you back in a few minutes? I was on a bumpy ride and now my head's literally reeling."

" Okay. Sure," He hangs up.

My phone rings again. It's him again.

" Yes?" I answer.

" Sorry about this but I had to, " I hear him saying. " Don't just keep watching the kids. Have some fun yourself too."

" I will," I tell him and he hangs up, leaving me smiling.

For the fourth time, my phone rings.

" Yes Percy?" I say in a more irritated tone that I was aiming for.

" Hey... Annabeth, right?" The person calling says.  
Crap! It's not him. In annoyance, I didn't even see the caller id.

It's an unknown number.

" Y- yeah," I say at last.

" Hi. This is Derek Evans."

Derek Evans. That for sure rings a bell.

" Remember me?" He questions.

" Ummm... not really. Sorry," I say apologetically.

" To remind you let me ask you something. There was a guy your step- mom was asking you to go out with?"

" Yes. His name is Derek Something. I don't remem-," It hits me mid sentence and my head stops wobbling." Oh, that's you?"

" Yes," Derek Evans says triumphantly.

" Okay. So?"

" So, I was going to ask you if you'd wanna go out tonight?"

" I don't know, if today is possible. I am at work right now and I'll be free after 7:30. Honestly, after a tiring day wouldn't you wanna just crash on your bed?"

" I completely understand your point. But, I was really looking forward to it. Can we please meet, at whatever time and place you want, please?"

" Ummm... Okay but, I can't stay very long and I don't want to keep you in the dark, I am not looking for a relationship right now. Will that be okay with you?"

" Of course. It is," He says enthusiastically.

" I'll text you the time and place," I try to sound positive.

Piper joins me in a few minutes. " Let's go back now."

" Hmm," I take the lead. " I just got asked out."

" OMIGOSH," Piper catches upto me. " Who was it? DID you say Yes or not?"

" I don't know if you remember him. That guy, Derek Evans, who my step mom was tryna get me to go out with."

" Of course, I remember him. So, what'd you say?"

" I am going but I told him I wasn't looking for a relationship and stuff,"i sigh.

" I see," Piper nods along. " What if I ask you the reason of you not being interested in a relationship?"

" You can't ask people that," I say in a nervous rush.

" Don't change the point. Are you waiting for a certain some one to realise his feelings for you?"

" No, Piper. Don't be ridiculous. If you are in love with some one, you don't expect anything in return. It's not necessary for them to love you back. And I never put forth, any conditions before falling for him. Love is unconditional."

" You do love him? I thought it was just a crush," Piper squeezes my hand.

" I do."

" But, you still have a glimmer of hope in your eyes," Piper looks in my eyes.

" Never lose hope," I smile and we walk back to where everyone was. We have food and later, there is a DJ in an open space. The children dance happily. Percy texts me after an hour again. I assure him everything is alright and he needs to take a long deep breath and relax his brain. I text Derek the time and place, we'd meet.

At 5 pm, I start receiving calls from parents, asking me when we will be leaving. So, I put a message in the Whatsapp class group when we leave. And, I count the kids 2 times. Take a roll call, just to assure there hasn't been any mistake and no one's left behind.

School's a two hour drive from the park. A few of kids have fallen asleep on the way back. Some are eating, some are singing and some are playing with cards.

* After 2 hours *

We reach school at 6:56 p.m. The kids get off, and I see parents waiting for them. Many of them had to be woken up, the ones who had fallen asleep. Parents are asking them how it was, did they eat, have fun etc. Teachers will stay till all the kids have been picked up. About, 7 kids are left at 7:30. Percy and Perrie are waiting for me, though I motioned them to go. But, Percy was adamant. They're sitting on a bench waiting.

Bran and Fred call the parents of the kids, who haven't still arrived. After, about 25 minutes, we are free. Everyone's gone home now.

" Let's have dinner," Percy sounds happy. " I got us some food."

" I am so sorry Percy. I can't go with you guys today. I have a date," I confess.

" Oh," His face falls. " You didn't tell, I mean, I didn't know."

" Sorry. It was just a spur of a moment decision. I only told Piper," I say quickly.

" At least let me drop you," Percy says looking at me. " And I can always come to get you back too."

" Honestly, you don't need to. I'll be fine on my own."

" Yes, you will be. But, we are going to drop you, no matter what."

" Okay," I nod. " I can go home by myself please?"

" Fine," He says full of sarcasm.

I get in the car with Percy, in the passenger's seat while Perrie sits in the back. I give Percy directions to ' Chloe's', that's where we are gonna meet.

" Call me if you need a ride," Percy slides down his window when I get off. " Be careful."

" Okay. I will," I wave them bye.

When I walk in a guy wearing a hoodie, waves at me. I put a smile on my face and advance towards him.

" Hi," I greet.

" Hello," He smiles. " I am Derek Evans."

" Annabeth Chase," I extend my hand to shake his hand.

" What would you like to have?" The waitress ' Alexa' asks us.

" I'd like a Crème latte and strawberry-chocolate pastry with honey flavoured almonds on top," Derek says looking at the menu.

" For you Miss?" Alexa asks me.

" The same," I hand her both the menu cards.

While we wait, he asks me about my job and vice-versa and we talk about my step mom too.

It is an honest chat. I'd already told him I wasn't looking to date and he said I could take all the time I want. I was thankful for that.

We split the bill into half and we step out.

" Okay so, I'll be leaving," I look at the watch in the café from the glass window. " It's getting late."

" Let's just sit for a little while more," Derek says looking at a bench outside. " I'll drop you home."

" Sure, " I mumble.

We talk for a little more while, sitting on the bench. I was talking, looking ahead, when I realise there's a pair of eyes staring at me. Derek's looking at me. I stop talking and turn my head to face him. He starts leaning in.

NO! I wasn't emitting that signal. He's going to kiss me. I don't want to.

" No, "I bolt up. " I don't want to."

" Why?" He asks standing up too. " Annabeth, I really like you. I am totally forming a crush on you right now. When your mom showed me your picture I was like, ' Wow. She's so damn pretty. I got to see her for at least once.' And now, here we are."

" Look, Derek you are really nice and cute. But I can't. I just can't," I say trying to explain.

" Is there some one else? Was it that car guy?"

My heart jumps when he mentions Percy. I adopt a silent tone.

" I get it. You are in love with him. That car dude," Derek says.

" Yes. I am, " I shrug.

" And he doesn't like you?"

" Not in that way. I mean, we are friends or as he would say Best friends," I shrug again.

" Aww," He pulls me in a hug. " Come here."

" I am fine Derek," I say trying to smile.

" He's an idiot. He doesn't realise what he is missing on," Derek looks at me.

" Don't call him that," I say defensively.

" Okay. Your Honour," He says. " It was nice meeting you, afterall. And there's a plus point."

" What?"

" I have a new crush," He says making me blush. " Let me drop you home."

I don't wanna go home. I want to be with Percy and have dinner.

" I'll go," I take my bag." Nice to meet you too."

I take off and find myself knocking at Percy's door.

" Do you have any food?" I ask as he opens the door.

" Will Ice Cream be fine?" He's rubbing his eyes.

" Great," I step in. He locks the door behind me and follows me.

" What happened Annabeth? Did it go terrible?" Percy turns on the kitchen light.

" Were you sleeping?"

" Not yet," He yawns. " Was going to. You didn't answer me."

" No it was fine, " I say nonchalantly. " He said he liked me. He wanted to kiss me, but-"

" But," Percy cuts in. " That weird crush of yours played his role and you had to let him down."

" Yeah," I nod frantically. " How do you know that?"

" I just do," Percy pulls out Ice cream from the fridge.

" Thanks," I take the can from him . " This is just unfair. He said he has a crush on me. But, I couldn't-"

" You have to say No some times. Even if they are your friends," Percy says with a little smile.

" Maybe."

" Of course," Percy smiles at me. My heart's pounding again and really loud.

' I love you.'

" You wanna go on the terrace?" He asks.

" And?"

" I dunno. Watch the stars or something," Percy suggests.

" I'd love to," My heart beats faster. I love him so much that I'd probably do anything for him.

Also, I know is it is hard for both of us. He still loves her and I love him.

Both of us love some one who doesn't love us back.

 **A/N: Thank you for reading and supporting the story. Thanks to everyone who followed and faved the story. Thanks so much.**

 **Fratzy, King of Heroes Gilgamesh, Guest thanks for leaving reviews. Thanks a bunch. It feels great to know people are liking the story.**

 **And spoiler: Rebecca Brown aka Becky will be seen in the next chapter.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: Own nothing you recognise.**

 **Annabeth**

 **31st October**

September passed quickly, and October rolled in leading to a change in weather, which is something I love. Today is the last day of October, therefore, holiday at school.

I don't know how I put myself in this situation. Scratching my head, contemplating a way out now is not possible.

Wait.

I think I remember how it went, I was in my pyjamas eating chocolates, when the phone rang at around 11 in the morning. I dashed to get it before it would stop ringing. Wasn't it my amazing best friend, Percy Jackson calling. Excited as ever, I answered.

" Hi Perce."

" Annabeth, could you do me a favour?" Anxiety flowed in his voice.

" Sure. I mean tell me," I answered with happiness.

" Actually, I was supposed to take Perrie and 5 of her friends trick or treating. However, an urgent project has surfaced up, which cannot be put off and Jason is on a 7 day vacation. So, I have to do it all alone. I'll have to do Jason's work too, in spite of the fact that I do not have much experience with coding. I have to research first, take help from Grover and Youtube. And, then test the product, which is actually my job."

" Ohkay," I said a little less excited than before. " I get it you have loads of work."

" Yes," Percy said. " Could you do it for me? Perrie'll be upset if I cancelled."

" No we won't let her be upset, don't worry. I got you," I said in a relaxed tone. " What time are they supposed to go?"

" I guess, around 6 pm, should be fine and try to be back by 9 max. I'll be home by 10," He told me.

" That's okay. I'll manage," I smiled.

" Thank you so much. You are the best," Percy said delighted.

" You are welcome," I asserted.

" And wait, maybe you'll need to pick up 2 kids that is, Ben and Ela. Also, they'll want to go to 357 street cause they were saying that they want to go somewhere near Sophie's house this turn-"

" That place is like 45 minutes drive from your place, right?"

" Yeah, I was gonna say do that only if you can, no pressure. And, you can take them in our neighbourhood itself and Perrie will direct you to Ben and Ela's places. They aren't very far, just about three minutes by car."

" All right. Fine. I'll do everything. What ever the kids want. Just do your work, and be home in time," I said before hanging up.

Love makes you do what not.

I get ready by 5:30 and leave for Percy's house. A woman in her late 20's opens the door, which I assume is some kid's mom.

" Hi," She says hesitantly.

" Hello," I bite my lip. " Annabeth Chase."

" I am Willow, Dan's mum," She barely nods. I step in the house following her inside. I spot 4 kids on the dining table, waiting for Percy. Three of them, Perrie, Sophie and Chris, I know from school. Perrie looks like Cindrella, Sophie is dressed a witch and Chris a Vampire.

" Miss Chase," Sophie exclaims. " Wow."

" Hi Miss Chase," Chris greets. I smile as I walk up to them. The fourth boy dressed like a skeleton must be Dan and also, he does not go to our school.

" Miss Chase," Willow says surprised. " Are you a teacher or something?"

" Yup," I nod. " At Blossoms."

" Where's Daddy, Miss Chase?" Perrie asks me.

" Perrie, daddy told me to tell you he's really sorry. He won't be able to make it. So, I am taking you instead. He sent me," I say looking at Perrie.

" That's going to be fun," Perrie laughs. The other kids nod.

" Why?" Willow is glowering at me, like I am the one who stopped him from going.

" Some urgent work came up," I shrug.

" I don't want to send my kid with you," She retorts and stares at me. " I hardly know you."

" Then come along," I suggest making my I-don't-really-care face.

" I was planning to if it would have been Mr Jackson," Willow says unimpressed. " I am so mad at Mr Jackson right now. I'll call him and let's postpone."

All she wants to do is flirt with him.

" Gosh woman," I move closer to her and whisper in her ear. " I guess, you completely lost an opportunity to flirt with Mr Jackson. Do it some other time lady, Don't spoil kids enjoyment."

Her face looks like that of someone who was caught red-handed.

" I wasn't," Willow stumbles for words. " You're so mean. Fine, Dan can go."

" Take care of Dan," Willow adds to me in undertone.

" That is my job, Mrs Sen," I smirk at her. " Don't teach me that."

We all step out of the house, while Willow lingers inside.

" Mrs Sen, " I say patiently. " What are you waiting for inside?"

" Well I was just gonna wait-"

" Look," I cut in quickly. " Percy aint gonna be back till 10. Stop being a kid about it. I'll drop Dan home. Plus, if you wanna visit don't bother coming back before 10."

" You Missy," She looks at me with anger. " are really rude with people."

And she steps out, finally.

" Well I am just telling you the truth," I say locking the door. " And, if that's rude to you, fine by me ."

" In case you wanna wait," I offer her the house key.

" I was just leaving," She scoffs. " Bye, kids. Have Fun."

" Okay," I stifle a laugh.

The 4 kids and I get in Percy's car. Perrie sits in the front and gives me directions to Ben and Ela's places. Ben has become a DJ and Ela is a fairy. Ela's parents know me cause she goes to our school, they are a bit surprised watching me driving the kids, and I explain Ben's parents the situation. They call Percy and confirm what I have told, before sending him along. All the kids have identical brown small paper bags with two plastic half loops to hold them, which are about the length of 20 cms.

" So, where do y'all want to go?" I steer carefully.

" Near my place," Sophie jumps up. " 357th street."

" All in agreement?" I question, looking at the kids in the mirror.

" Yeah," They say together.

" Let's do it," I say with enthusiasm.

I drive the six kids to 357th street and give them a few instructions.

1\. Always stay together.

2\. Nobody wanders alone without informing me.

3\. Don't enter some one's house unless they particularly invite you.

I park the car in a cafe's parking lot, which is about 10 steps from the neighbourhood we are gonna go to.

" Is everybody clear with the instructions?" I say loudly to generate interest.

" Yes Miss Chase," The kids say in unison.

" Come on then," I say when we climb out of the car and I start walking behind the kids as they start going from door to door repeating the phrase, ' Trick or Treat'. Most of the people gave kids candy and were quite friendly, just for an exception here or there. At one place, no one opened the door and another upon seeing that its the kids didn't come out. Weird people, could atleast say hello or happy Halloween.

Its about 7:30 and we have visited around 10-15 places, by foot. I can see the kids are getting tired, but they don't want to stop.

" You guys, want to go home now?" I ask the kids.

" Not right now," Dan says.

" No no," Ela shakes her head.

" Miss Chase," Sophie adds. " We wanna go there." She points to an old looking house.

" You sure?" I bend my knees.

" Of Course," She takes off and the other kids follow.

" Hey," I hurry after them. " Didn't I say, stay together?" Nobody seems to be listening though. They're kids after all.

We reach the house and ring the doorbell, which is answered by an old woman and her husband. They seem so pleased to see the kids, that immediate smiles cover their faces. They offer kids candies and chocolates, and even ask us to come inside for some cake.

" I umm... think we are getting late," I try to politely refuse, but the kids are a bit adamant about going.

So, we go inside and have a tasty pineapple banana cake with icing on top. We spend about 15 minutes, with the grandpa and grandma. They talk to us, and tell us how they always wished some kids would stop by some time at Halloween. They ask the kids to come back again next year and make me promise I would bring them back soon. It feels very good after visiting them. They said they haven't had a visitor in the past 10 months and were lonely. I promised them, " We'll come back sooner that they'll be expecting."

" Mum had said I should definitely come here," Sophie says after we turn to go in another lane.

" That was very nice of her," I say smiling.

We go to another lane and kids start going from door to door. I look at the watch, its 8 pm.

" Should we go back now?" I question again. " Its 8'o clock. Perrie, daddy said you need to be back by 9."

" Miss Chase," Chris whines. " Just two places left on this lane."

" All right," I nod wisely. " Just, these two."

We proceed towards the remaining two houses. The kids are getting candy from the owners of the second last house, when my phone vibrates. Its Percy.

" Hey," I reply. The owners wish the kids ' Happy Halloween' and shut the door.

" Hi," He says in a rushed tone. " How long will you guys be?"

" We're about to just leave," I say as we are walking to the last one. " Just one last house."

" Good, don't be very long."

" Yes, I am speeding them up. Is your work done?"

" I guess, but I am still left with some, so it will be a while."

I didn't realise, I had stopped walking and the kids are already standing at the door of the last house, waiting to ring the bell.

" Okay," I dart towards them. " Gotta go."

" Yup," He says. " Me too."

" Bye," I say as I have reached the door and I hurriedly disconnect the phone and put in my jeans pocket.

Perrie rings the doorbell. Kids are chanting ' Trick or Treat'. The door is answered by a tall(about 5' 8), slim, slender with long legs, pretty, no, very pretty, scratch that, absolutely gorgeous girl about my age. Her strawberry blonde hair, untied, but neatly combed flow down upto her waist. Her eyes are a beautiful blue. She looks at us carefully scanning each one of us. I follow her gaze.

" I thought I'd heard-," She freezes when her eyes fall on Perrie. I realise Perrie has gone rigid too.

OH MY GOD! If I'm not wrong, could that possibly be-

" Perrie, hi," The girl regains control of her self. " They're your friends?"

" Hi mum," Perrie says not meeting her eyes. " Yes."

I never thought I'd be meeting her like this or even that I'd be meeting her ever.

" How've you been?" Becky bends on her knees and hugs her daughter. I look at the other kids. They don't seem to get what's going on. I don't know what to do right now.

" Fine, whatever. Do you even care?" Perrie says with disdain in her voice.

" Of course I do," Becky mutters. She looks on the verge of tears.

" Sure," Perrie gives a humourless laugh. " Lets go." She turns on her heel and the rest of the kids follow.

" No wait," Becky grabs her arm. I take the rest of the kids with me and make them stand together a bit far from the door near the porch, and tell them to wait and not move even a muscle.

I am standing in the middle keeping an eye on the kids as well as listening to what's going on between the mother-daughter.

" How long have you been here?"

" Just a few days," Becky says quietly. If she was here, didn't she want to see her daughter?

" Were you gonna tell us, like ever?" Perrie glances at her.

" Of course, baby. I was gonna drop by and surprise you guys," Becky takes her daughter's hand.

" When?"

" Soon," She rubs Perrie's hand. I look at the other kids at the same time, they're busy counting candies.

" That's what you said when you left for good," Perrie frees her hand from Becky's grasp.

" I am so-"

" Don't say you're sorry," Perrie, the girl who never yells, raises her voice. " You left me and Daddy when we needed you the most. You know what he never moved on. He's still in love with you and you, you don't care. He still thinks it's his fault you left, when it is clearly not."

" Perrie, baby, I'll make it upto you. I promise," Becky pleads. " I do want him to move on. It doesn't make me happy either. Just do me a favour for now, don't tell Percy I am here or that you saw me."

" I won't, " Perrie says a little harshly." That will break his heart. I don't want to see him hurt." With that, Perrie runs towards me not looking back at her mum or the house, and we all walk back to the car. Perrie's friends do not ask her what happened back there. I reckon, they kind of know.

I don't know what occured between the three of them but I do know that Becky leaving messed up their lives and it took a lot of strength to get back on track.

I drop the kids home and pull into Percy's garage. Perrie climbs out, she was quiet all the way back, which is quite unusual for her. I pull out my wallet to find the house key.

I am unlocking the house when I hear clicking of heels behind us. I turn around to see who it is, desperately hoping Willow is not back. I am relieved to see Rachel Elizabeth Dare, Percy's childhood friend walking up to us.

" Hi," She says to both of us.

I usher them both in and I observe she has a packet with her.

" Percy called," Rachel opens the pack to reveal a tiffin box. " He told me to get you guys some food. Ain't you hungry, Per?"

" Of course," Perrie grins looking at the food.

" Annabelle, you too," Rachel smiles at me.

" Its Annabeth actually," I correct her.

" Oh my god! I am so sorry, I always thought you were called Annabelle. Forgive me about that, will you?"

" Yes , its completely okay. Common mistake. Don't worry about it," I peer at her, baffled. Nobody has ever apologised to me like that, for just getting my name wrong.

We have food(prepared by Mrs Vin), while Perrie tells Rachel what what we did skipping the Becky part. Rachel listens, enthralled. I stare at the clock, wishing time to go by faster. I want to sleep, I am tired.

" I think Perrie should go to bed now," Rachel teases Perrie.

" Daddy is not home yet," Perrie pouts.

" He'll be back in half an hour or so," Rachel assures her. " You go to sleep."

" Okay," She frowns. Rachel goes and tucks her into bed. I wait for her sitting at the table.

" Are you going to wait for Percy?" Rachel asks me, when she comes back.

" Did you walk here?" I ask her out of the blue.

" No Rafael dropped me. You know Rafael?"

" Yeah. Your Boyfriend," I nod absently.

" Hmm," She says with a small smile, so small that you'd have to look carefully to notice.

" Do you love him?" I stare at her.

" That's an absurd question, yes I-"

" Don't say you do when your eyes say different. I know you're in love with Percy," I say the thing that has been on my mind for a while. " Then, how come you have a boyfriend?"

" How come you know?" Rachel says, shocked.

" Its obvious, " I shrug. " The way you look at him. I saw the difference when you talked to Rafael and when you talked to Percy, at his birthday party, remember?"

" Okay, Rafael is not my boyfriend," Rachel admits.

" What? But, Percy told me he was," I shoot her a dubious look.

" Cause that's what I told him," Rachel shrugs.

" Why?"

" I'll tell you," Rachel sits down next to me. " Percy and I have known each other since we were like 3. I've had a crush on him for as long as I remember. In my teenage days, I often dreamed of asking him out or dating him. I always wanted to. But, in junior year a new girl, Perrie's mum, Rebecca Brown joined our school. She was drop dead gorgeous, all the guys were like into her. Percy was too. I don't know how, but they hit it off and started dating. Sure, it broke my heart, but I was happy for my friend as long as he was happy. I knew I loved him, and I still do. At the same time, I didn't want to be a hindrance in his happiness. I was content with life and tried to move on."

" Why Rafael then?" I ask.

" Be patient woman, there's more."

" Ohkay," I shut my mouth.

" When Becky left, Percy was 20 and Perrie was just 2-"

" Wait, isn't she 5? So, if 4 years ago she was 2 how is-"

" You don't have no patience," Rachel shakes her head. " Perrie is 6, not 5. Quiet now," She warns and continues when I make no protests. " I saw hope. I thought I'd tell him how I felt. So, one fine day I reached his apartment, to find it wasn't empty. His mom, Sally was there. I couldn't take it anymore, so I confessed everything to her. She was delighted and encouraged me to tell him. Little did I know, he had overheard everything. Percy was in his third year of university at that time. It was getting difficult to have a kid as well as work part time and study too. He was under pressure, managing a kid alone was hard and there had been no sign of Becky for like 10 months now. Being a single parent plus student was getting harder day by day. He was thinking maybe he should like settle down, get married and start a new life. So, when I told him I love him and asked him out. He said Yes, but he also told me he did loved me but only as a friend. I said, "Lets give it a shot." At the same time, I always terribly wanted it to work out."

" Did you go out with him?"

" Yes, we went on like 5 dates. I kissed him on the second one, it was amazing for me and meant everything, while it meant nothing to him. He was trying though. I would never say he didn't give his 100 percent, he always attempted. But, he couldn't. He was truthful, always. And he told me that on the fifth and our last date, he tried to fall in love with me too. He pressurised his brain to think it loved me, alas, he could never see me more than a friend. I broke up with him after that, I wanted him to move on, but not like this. I accepted he would never love me," Rachel blinks, thinking and remembering everything. " I told him we need to be back at being friends, and he agreed to that. I started visiting his house, normally, just like I always did before we went out. There was a change in him. He started distancing himself from me, maybe because he was uncomfortable or because of the guilt that he broke my heart. I often told him I was fine and don't need to worry no more. He never looked me in the eyes anymore. It had been 3 months and I could bear the silence anymore. I didn't want to lose him so I told him I was seeing some one. I was over him. He looked me in the eyes after 90 days."

" Then he asked to meet him?" I take a guess.

" Yes. I thought, why not, if that solves our problems and gets rid of the weirdness between us. I called the casting agency and hired an actor to act as my boyfriend. Its been 2 years now," Rachel finishes.

" The actor is Rafael?"

" Of course, silly."

" Its been 2 years, don't you think it will be fine now if you like..." I trail off.

" I dunno," She says. " Don't want to take a chance."

" Ahh!" I nod with realisation. " Okay. But, you still love him?"

" Yup," She nods. " I accepted it long time ago, I fell for a broken heart."

' I am in the same boat.'

" But since you accepted that, why haven't you moved on?"

" Ummm... Because two reasons, one its not as easy as you think and second, haven't found anyone to my liking yet."

" I don't think its easy."

" Percy hasn't healed yet," Rachel points out. " Maybe some day, he will. I think you'd be perfect for him,"

" What?" My mouth drops open.

" Just like you know I love him, do you take me as an idiot? I know about you, though I have a good feeling about you."

" Huh?"

" Has he opened up to you? Like about Becky and everything?"

" No."

" Trust me, he will. And, I like you for him. You'd be perfect."

" Thanks?" I say, puzzled. " I reckon you remember I fell for a broken heart too."

" You did," She nods in satisfaction. " Time heals everything and if you've got the right person along, it shouldn't be very hard. Of course , it will take time. You've got to be patient with him."

Saying those words, Rachel left me sitting alone with my thoughts. I was wondering if I should tell Percy about Becky, though she didn't want him to know.

It is not before 10:17 that Percy arrives. I notice he's wearing a T-shirt that has his picture on back and the words 'Best Daddy of the world' on its front.

" Hey," He smiles widely, almost causing me a heart attack. Despite those dishevelled hair and tired look on his face, he manages to look good.

" Rachel brought food," I serve him the pasta she had brought.

" I told her," Percy says washing his hands.

" I should leave now," I glance at the clock.

" Come on, " Percy requests. " Just stay till I eat?"

" Kay," I sit back down. " Did you finish your task?"

" UH huh," He nods while eating. I wait till he's done. I tap my feet sending him the signal that I need him to hurry up.

" Both you and Perrie eat like there's no tomorrow," I put the dishes in the dishwasher.

" Whose daughter is she afterall?" Percy laughs.

" Should have known," I shake my head. He chuckles again.

" I like your shirt," I point to the T-shirt he's wearing.

" Perrie got this for my birthday. I was gonna wear this to the trick or treating. But, I didn't even get to go," He says in dismay.

" Sorry about that. You could wear this to the children's day at school on 14th next month," I suggest.

" That's," Percy says thrilled. " what now I call a good idea."

" I should go now," I repeat and jump up.

" Wait I wanted to ask you... so did you ummm..." He's blushing. " like her?"

" Like who?"

" Becky. I know, you saw her. That was her,right?"

" How'd you know that? I did see her. " I say, taken aback. How could he possibly know, Perrie's asleep, I didn't mention it. Could it be that some kid mentioned it to his/her parents and they phoned him.

" I called you right?" Percy smiles.

" Yeah."

" You never disconnected the phone. I waited for a while and was going to disconnect, when I thought maybe I'd just heard her voice. And, then Perrie and she talked, man I was overjoyed. I am just so happy," He can't stop grinning.

Crap! I remember now, when I had disconnected the call I was in a rush, I might have clicked on the speaker mode and not the disconnect button.I think I should tell him the truth of the situation.

" Percy, don't judge, just listen," I pause for a measure of time. " I think you didn't hear the full conversation."

" I was listening," He frowns. " but it disconnected after a minute."

Must have happened when I pulled the other kids towards the porch.

"Did you talk to her? Did she talk about me? Why didn't she call if she was here? What did she say? Tell me everything." Percy's eyes are twinkling with hope." What do you think, is there a chance? Will we be a family again? Maybe she wants to get back together with me, does she?"

I don't want to shatter his hopes. He'll break again. That's what Perrie feared.

I remember her clearly saying she wanted him to move on. She doesn't want to be with him. And, there's also the fact that Perrie is angry at her mum. How do I tell him that?

 **A/N: HI thanks a lot for reading.**

 **I won't be able to update for around 10 days now, so I got a quick update for y'all.**

 **Thanks for being supportive and thank you for following and favourting the story.**

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 **I hope you all enjoy this chapter. I'll see you probably by end of june or maybe start of july(this is more likely though).**


	7. Chapter 7

**DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN ANYTHING YOU RECOGNIZE.**

 **A/N- I had to delete the last chapter because of some reason. I'd be happy, If you could assume that chapter never happened and it all continues from here.**

 **2 November**

 **ANNABETH**

" So my score is 157", I say after calculating my points. " And yours?"

" 49," he says with an adorable pout.

" Yay! I win again," I exclaim throwing my fist up in the air.

" Yeah, like only the sixth time in a row," Percy gives me a look that says 'You-are-so-competitive.'

" Ha," I laugh lightly.

Here, I am at Percy's house. We are playing Scramble, the word game, or we can also call it my favorite game, the one I brought to his house. Perrie is at a friend's house on a play-date with a few other kids, otherwise, she would have played on his side. We sit cross legged across from each other on a carpet, a table between us and the game board on top of it. My bag lies on the left of my side of the table, opposite to it is placed Percy's finished coffee mug while mine is situated on my right.

" Come on, Beth," Percy stands up, picks up the two mugs and moves towards the couch. " We've been at it for two hours now. I need a coffee brea-,"

" We playing again after-," I follow after him.

" No," he says quickly. " No no. You've won six times in a row already, that means all of the times we played today."

" Ah!," I shake my head slightly. " But, I love this game."

" Yeah," Percy smiles. " That's amazing sweetie. Nevertheless, you can see that I am terrible. I need coffee and then, we watch a good movie."

 _Sweetie_

My brain goes in a fuzzy and stops functioning upon hearing, the word, and forgets to register what he said after that. I think I might have heard movie.

" Movie?" I echo.

" Yup," he bends down to pull out something from the box kept under the DVD player.

"Of course, I love them. All and each one of them. I mean, of course, who doesn't like movies? Such an awesome way to pass time. That's an amazing idea. I am sure that's fu-fun. Innit?"

" Hmm. It is," Percy hands me a collection of DVDs. "Choose," He says before walking towards the kitchen.

When did he get them out? He probably didn't even notice that he called me sweetie. It's probably a common word for him. Yeah, I have heard parents use it all the time on their kids.

 _Shit_. Probably, the 187th time I have embarrassed myself, in front of him today. It was a whole new level.

First off, earlier, today when I walked in the house carrying my game and towards the kitchen following closely behind Perrie, he looked up and grinned at me and I almost tripped on my heels. Thankfully, grabbing the nearby chair saved me from the terrible fall. They both didn't notice.

Secondly, he caught me staring at him and that wasn't just once. It was about _185_ times( ** _she's exaggerating_** ). He wasn't making it any easier for me. It wasn't intentional. I just couldn't help it when he looked so adorable when ever he couldn't find a word or when his eyes shone upon finding a good one or the time when he scrunched up his eyebrows trying to concentrate.

And, the master stroke, I start rambling and all he says is 'Hmm. It is '. He is probably thinking I am a weirdo.

I put up Legally Blonde in the DVD set and shake my head, trying to get it straight and rush towards the kitchen.

His eyes find mine and a warm smile adores his face, as I step up beside him.

" What'd you choose?" Percy asks looking up from the mug he is adding coffee too.

" Legally Blonde," I announce.

" Good choice," he nods with a small smile, looking dreamily at the roof as if reminiscing something.

" Wait,did I miss something? What just happened?" I say confused.

" Reminded me of someone."

" Who someone? We are best friends," I press. Normally, I wouldn't have, but, seeing what happened two days ago and if it is Becky, I want to know.

" Umm... you know... just...Becky. She loves this movie and it was the first one we had watched together, " he says and I immediately feel guilty for not telling him what she had said that day. A lump forms in my throat. I should have told him the truth, that day. It only becomes harder if you put it off.

 _'Great Annabeth.' I say to myself sarcastically._

" I am going to call her soon," he says further, with a smile so precious, the kind that makes you think he is so in love. I feel a tint of jealously, something I've not really felt before because now, I realize that he won't ever smile like that thinking of me. My mind contemplates if it would be the right time to tell him or should I wait till he finds out by himself. The latter option will lead to bad consequences for me since he is absolutely gonna hate me for the reason that I knew it and still didn't tell him while the former would just leave him distressed.

 _If you ever asked me why I did that,_ _I just didn't want to hurt you. Additionally, on the assumption that things were in my hand I wouldn't ever let you feel that ache._

" Aren't we having lots of coffee today?" I say changing the topic as I still do not have the guts to tell him something that will crush his heart and helping myself with a blue cookie, placed in the jar on the shelf above us. It wasn't here before.

" Don't we always?" he says dubiously. I shrug(trying to convey not really), my mouth full of another cookie I am chewing.

" I see you like them. Gimme one too," Percy beams at me.

" Nope," I say hiding the jar behind me. " All mine. Its so gooooood. I am taking them with me. Where did you get them from? And, what's with the color?"

" Hah," he huffs, crossing his arms across his chest." I made those. Furthermore, blue is an old tradition. Runs in the family."

" You made these?" I repeat out loud, managing to chew quickly.

" Yo! and you need to learn to share," he says distractedly as he fetches some sugar from the side cupboard.

" You can bake?"

" Of course. My mom taught me."

" And you ain't getting them back," I stick out my tongue at him.

" That's plain evil," Percy puts the milk on the stove for boiling.

" It," I pop another in my mouth. " su-sure isn't."

" Guuuuuuuurl," he tries to seize the jar from me.

" Not today Perseus," I say as I take off with the container. "Catch me if you can."

" You're so dead," I can hear his hurried footsteps behind me, and it _is_ closer now.

I run towards the place diagonal from me which is Perrie's room. I turn around the doorknob and dash inside, shutting the door behind. I look around for a place to hide the jar, but, instead find myself squished between the wall and the left side of the cabinet where there is very little room to stand. I stay there chomping another one of those delicious cookies. It tastes like chocolate covered with brownie, mixed with choco-chips and a tint of vanilla with raspberry jam as a supplementary flavor.

I hear the doorknob being rotated. I was so busy enjoying the taste of the cookies that I had forgotten what the hell I was doing here. I almost jump up in surprise.

"Found ya," Percy smirks, looking at me directly like he had expected me to be hiding precisely there and shutting the door behind. " Not going anywhere with them now."

" Umm...Hang on ," I shift awkwardly trying to get out of that closed space, but instead getting stuck more than before.

He raises one eyebrow at me.

" I... errrr... finished them all," I say smiling cheekily.

" No. You... you didn't," Percy says horrified as he takes steps towards me.

I nod thrice gravely.

" Really?" his face falls _so cutely_ just like a little kid that I burst into laughter.

At the moment, he stands exactly in front of me, looking at me with those alluring eyes of his.

" Alright," I pull out the jar from behind my back and open it. " Here, I'll give you one. Rest is still mine."

" Thank you," he sighs in defeat. He pops it in his mouth, and, munches it slowly enjoying every flavor before a mischievous grin spreads on his face, and I figure what he is upto. A moment later, he tries to snatch the jar from my hand, lunging _forward_ in a swift movement.

" Not that easy," I pull the jar behind my back again as I start to feel my cheeks heat up, my heart skipping a number of beats at once and my stomach churning thinking about how close he is.

" Wow. You have good reflexes Annabeth," Percy says in surprise.

I find myself unable to speak for a few seconds, still trying to digest the fact that there's literally not more than 4 cms of space between us.

" Shoot! The milk. It was on the stove," I say having no control over what words flow out of my mouth.

Percy peers at me as if thinking 'what the heck', for a second, before the realization hits him, "Right!", he says before whipping around and sprinting out of the room.

I dart out taking a deep breath, after my heartbeat comes back to its normal pace, and place the jar on the dining table as I move to the kitchen.

I see two cups of coffee ready placed ready to drink.

" I'm hungry," Percy says picking up one and handing me the other one.

" Hmm," I glance at the wall clock and accept the cup of coffee from him. It is 3'o clock. " We could order something. It is lunch time."

" What do you wanna eat?"

" Pizza?"

" No. We had that for dinner yesterday. Remember?"

" Yeah, so then?" I question.

" Pasta?"

" Not really. I don't feel like," I shake my head, frowning.

" Umm.. noodles?" he grabs his phone lying on the dinning table.

I shake my head again.

" Then?" Percy says tapping on the Zomato app on his phone.

" Show me," I take his phone from him. " Well, we could get a 50 percent discount from 'Delicious Food' restaurant."

" Let's order then," He says brightly." We could wait watching the movie."

" Spring rolls?" I suggest.

" Perfect," he grins.

" Alright then," I put them on the cart. " Anything else?"

" Ooooooh Ice Cream," he licks his bottom lip. " I want ice cream."

" It's cold," I frown as I look at him. "It is frigging November. Nobody in their right mind eats ice cream in winters."

" Annnabeeth," Percy whines. " Comeeee on, please?"

" Well Hell yeah," I say choosing my ice cream. " That is what I meant. Nobody in their right mind does it. All the more reason to do it."

" Please please please a thousand times please?"

" Perseus?"

" Yeah? And don't call me that. Hey, how do you even know my full name?"

 _I might have looked it up in Perrie's file._

" You told me and also, I kinda figured," I say with confidence that nobody can question.

" Did I?"

" Yes, of course. How the hell else am I supposed to know?"

" I guess, that's right plus language."

" Perseus, Perrie isn't home."

" She will be soon. I have got to go and pick her in about three hours, don't call me that."

" Alrighty, Perseus."

" Giiiiirrllll," he throws up his hands in the air.

" I like it, Perseus. Sounds so grand and heroic."

" Precisely the reason why I hate it."

" I can't guarantee anything, but I'll try."

" Fine. But, I need Ice cream."

" And I just agreed, however, don't you dare tell anybody and especially Perrie."

" Beth, why do you think I haven't had any ice cream while she was home?"

" That's right," I nod earnestly. " You haven't had any while she was home. That is responsible."

He smiles and I place the order for spring rolls and two vanilla choco crumb filled cones with layers of caramel and sugar roasted almonds on top.

" How did you know I was there?" I ask amidst the movie. I press the pause button as we see reach the mid of the movie. I wasn't even watching the movie. I was kind of zoned out debating what would be the right time to tell Percy what Becky said. I kept stealing glances at him, trying to look for the opportunity.

' Stalkerish much, Annabeth? Stop it,' I chide myself.

" Huh?" For a moment, Percy looks taken back, then he raises his eye brows waiting for me to elaborate.

" In Perrie's room?" I lean back on the cushion.

" Oh! That!," he says in realization. " Perrie always hides there."

" Always?"

" Well yeah," he chuckles softly. " I pretend I do not know about it. She thinks she fooled me and I play along, not breaking her belief."

" That's sweet," I press play.

My mind starts drifting off again as we continue watching.

" Hey, What was that word? I was going to ask you before but then well.. you ran off" he says all of a sudden, startling me as I am about to fall asleep.

" What?" I say stupidly.

" The word," Percy says snickering. " You almost fell asleep."

" Its not funny," I say with a shrill hilarity.

" Sure," he starts laughing. I roll my eyes before joining him.

" What word?" I say after a while.

" That long one."

" What long one?"

" It was ummm... I dunno, something like..."

" Like?"

" Pultrui.. something?"

He is referring to the game of scramble we were playing before.

" That was pulchritudinous," I tell him. I think that is the longest I had made today.

" Come again?"

" Pulchritudinous."

" Pulchitunous?"

" No," I say patiently with a small smile. I break it down for him," Pul-chri-tudi-nous". This is a part of my job, too. I am used to it.

" Pulchriwhat? How do you even remember its spelling?"

" Well... it is quite easy once you write it down about 100 times ," I smile.

" Whoa and what does it even mean?"

" It means beautiful, gorgeous, charming just like yo-," I stop myself mid sentence, hyper-aware of what I was going to say and move my hand around in a swift motion. " your house."

 _Almost gave myself away._

Thankfully, the doorbell rings.

" I'll get it," I saunter off towards the door to grab the food.

I pay the delivery guy and take the bag inside and we have food and ice cream while watching the rest of the movie.

" I forgot to tell you something," I say after we are done with the dishes, as we sit on the sofa doing nothing but scrolling on our smartphones. We could always go another round of scramble. But, some people, huh! Weird. (He didn't want to lose again.)

" Yeah?" he says curiously.

" My mom has invited you and Perrie, of course, to dinner next Saturday night," I say casually. Percy stares at me for a few moments, unable to speak.

" What?What? Your mom? The Athena? The CEO of Athens? Oh my god! The biggest Architecture company in the world? No, not the world. I mean the whole universe, no no the planet. Why? I mean what on earth did I do that The Athena invited me for-"

" Percy, stop," I look in his eyes and place my hands on his shoulders. " You are rambling."

" Oh, sorry," his ears go red from embarrassment.

" I meant my step-mom and dad," I clarify.

" So, not Athena?"

" Yeah," I suppress a smile. _'Athena isn't that great.'_

" You almost gave me a heart attack," dramatically he places his hand on his heart.

" You are too much. Well, Jason and Piper too. All my friends, Silena, Hazel, Frank, Thalia, Luke," I smile back.

" Count me in. Why'd you let me ramble on for so long?"

" Cause um... that was funny," I shrug, with laughter escaping my mouth. _'And cute.'_

He huffs and stares at the ceiling for a minute. " Didn't you just call your step-mom mom?"

" I did, I call her mom. She's been more of a mother to me than my biological mother," I put my phone down and sink slowly to the carpet, putting my arms around my knees. " Be it my first crush, first period, first heartbreak, first boyfriend, all my achievements and failures. Olivia was always there. Athena was never."

" You never told me that," Percy follows my motion and drops down to the carpet, next to me.

" When I was 7, my mother told me she couldn't stay with dad anymore. She told me to pack my bags if I wanted to go with her. I didn't understand what was happening back then. But, I packed my bags and got ready to go, forgetting everything, ready to start afresh with my mom. My mother never... to-told me what had happened and I self assumed that dad had cheated on her..."

" Because?" Percy frowns.

" because... that's what they show in movies. The one who leaves has been cheated on. I hate cheaters so I started hating my fath-father and in a two days, mom and I landed in New Rome. Mom had gotten her dream job and she sent dad divorce papers. We lived in a beautiful posh neighborhood. My house was big. It had everything, ranging from big bedrooms attached bathrooms, guest rooms to swimming pools and there was even a small library exactly adjacent to my room. I was liking it at first. I had everything... if... I talk about material things. I spent my time in the library reading and exploring different topics. But, slowly, I was getting bored. Mom wouldn't be home for hours and even days sometimes. I had the whole big empty house to myself. A caretaker used to come to check on me during afternoons and that was it for the human interaction I had when I was not at school," I clench my fists.

" You were all alone?" Percy asks.

" Yeah and my mom barely had any time for m-me. She-she even missed my birthday. I spent it all alone with no family and no friends by my side. School started. I joined a new school. My dad tried talking to me. However, I was angry with him. I didn't listen to him. Albeit, I was lonely, I refused to go back home to him. Two years passed. I was nine when my mom said she needs to go to London for two months and I can't go with her. I was to live with my dad for that summer vacation. Absolutely horrified, I packed my bags. I hated my life. My dad came to New Rome to pick me for our flight next day, we reached his place my doubts were confirmed when a woman opened the doors. My dad was dating her. My hatred for him grew. The woman introduced herself as Olivia, my soon to be step-mom. Locking myself in my old room, I spent my vacations alone only getting out for food and water. Olivia tried to be nice to me. Tried to talk to me, be friends. But, I was adamant. I left for New Rome learning that she was pregnant with twins and I am going to be an older sister in a few months. Twins were born after six months. I was just ten back then."

" When did they get married?" Percy is looking at my clenched fists. He takes my hands and opens my fingers. Just with his touch, I feel the tension going away. He doesn't let go of my left hand rubbing his thumb over the back of my palm. It is helping me relax. I release the breath I was holding in.

" About two months before the twins were born. I did go. That day when dad came to get me, I wasn't happy about it. But, now, I feel I would have regretted if I would have not gone. I phoned mom soon after the wedding and left asap. I didn't see them for another two and half years. Dad was asking mom to send me to his place for a while now, so it was decided that I would be spending my vacation with dad and his family. As always, I didn't want to go except I did and I don't regret till date. I had thought those two months would suck. When I reached home, I met my step-brothers for the first time. They were so small and cute. I remember playing with them the whole day and I had even started being a little civil to Olivia and dad. My days got better when one fine day Olivia and I were out in the playground to walk my brother's prams when I met my first ever two best friends, Thalia and Luke. Those two accepted me in their gang and I was happy. Not lonely, for the first time and I-I... for the first time, I-I had friends to invite over for my birthday. That was the best birthday I ever had. My thirteenth birthday. Friends and even family... well sorta since I was still mad at dad," I don't fail to notice how Percy is just looking at me with my hand still in his.

" I have a feeling your dad never cheated on your mum," Percy says squeezing my hand a little. " Did he though?"

" No," I smile shaking my head. " He didn't. I learnt that next year when I went back for summer vacation. This time I urged my mom to let me go. Honestly, it was all because of Thalia and Luke. I wanted to be with my friends. During those days, we had email. That's how we stayed in touch when I was in Rome. They both hugged me when we met. Thalia was pretty and Luke, well he had gotten more handsome than last summer. I was starting to get this weird feeling around him, something I hadn't felt before. Something I had no idea about, something I couldn't name. Twins were four now. I was starting to spend more time with them, and Thalia Luke. My life back at my mom's was miserable, while, here, I was lively. It was the complete opposite of what I had before. People to play, spend time with, talk, listen to, and quite importantly eat dinner with. Dad and Olivia were trying their best to get closer to me. Only I was pushing them away. Nevertheless, it all changed that day. I sitting in my room. Suddenly, I felt something. I didn't know what it was so I ignored it till I had to pee. Upon reaching the washroom, all I knew was that something was wrong with me and blood was flowing out of my body. What should I do I was thinking. I rang up my mother.

" Hello?" She answered after I had called about fifteen times.

" Mom, I don't feel good," I said in a choked voice. I was panicking. My clothes were getting dirty.

" Annabeth is it an emergency because seriously I don't have time to exchange pleasantries and, yeah, Henry, I am coming," She answered in a hurried voice. " I'll call you back in a while."

" But, mom I don't know what's going on with me," I tried to explain.

" Later dear," She hung up on me. I was crying. To the point that, my sobs were so loud that the person in next room could have easily heard them. So, Olivia did and the washroom door was flung open. She rushed inside.

" Annabeth," she cried and looked at me with concern in her eyes.

" Olivia," I started. " I am so sorry. I didn't know-"

" Oh my god," She did something I had never expected. She hugged me. " Poor baby, how could you have known. It is alright dear. You got your first period."

" Period?" I repeated.

" Yeah, come with me," She took me by my hand and gave me a pad to use. She taught me how to use it and she even told me about periods and how it was normal and something I shouldn't be worried about. Frankly, I was touched. My mother didn't even bother and here, this woman I barely knew was trying her best to get to know me. She became my friend that day. I started calling her Liv. "

" Did your mom call you back?" Percy says earnestly. He is _still_ holding my hand. I feel my face getting red.

" No. I realized something that day," I say without looking up.

" What was it?" he whispers.

" It was me. All the time. Every-time. Not once did my mom ever call me. She didn't and doesn't really care," I say after a pause. " She is the CEO after-all."

Percy seems at loss for words. There is a short silence before I continue.

" Liv told me and cleared my doubts about how dad had never cheated on mom. We were cooking dinner. I used to help her now and then.

" Annabeth, can I tell you something?" Liv said as I passed her the pepper.

" Sure, yeah, anything," I said encouragingly.

" I am not saying this to make you feel bad or make you believe me. It is perfectly okay if you don't want to trust me," She said looking away.

" I trust you," I said astounded. I didn't before I admit. Except, that has changed now.

" Your dad. He um... he never cheated on your mom. Not with me. Not with anybody else. Never once. It was her. Athena. She wanted the divorce. She couldn't put family over work. Your dad and s-she fought for months before she decided to break it off. She wanted to be free. I don't blame her for putting work over him. That is completely her choice. She can do what ever she likes. The only thing that pinches is that she wouldn't ever consider his opinions or take his point of view into account. When you guys left, Fred had suggested that you all could go together. But, he needed a few weeks. All he wanted was for her to ask her employer to delay her joining date till he resigned from his job. I guess, she didn't want that. She asked him to release her. She wanted the divorce," Liv finished.

" So then how did you open the door when I came back?"

" We had met just previous year. Long after his divorce. It was almost like an instant connection between us," she said smiling.

" Why didn't you tell me before?" I questioned her quickly. I was so wrong I realized. I owed them apologies, especially Dad.

" We tried," she shrugged. " You were angry. So, we decided to give you some time. To wait. Till you were ready to listen."

" I am so sorry to both of you," I said in a small voice. " I should have listened to him before. I am gonna talk to him, now, should I?"

" Yeah," she nodded.

I talked to him. We sorted out all differences. I think we cried. It was decided that I would be staying with my dad for High School. Liv phoned mom. She had no started going out for family outings and I was loving it here. Things got better between us. I was 14. Just a freshman and it would be interesting to go to school with Thalia and Luke. And, I still couldn't name the weird feeling I used to get around him. Life was getting amazing. I had friends at school even if they were older than me and my family loved me.

" Liv," I called out through the hallway before going to school in ninth grade. " I am leaving."

" Hang on kid," she said running towards me. " Do you need a ride?" She handed me my lunch box.

" Thanks and No," I put the box in my bag. " Luke's here to pick me."

" You totally have a crush on him," Liv ruffled my hair.

" What?" my mouth was open. " What? No?"

" Not no. It is yo. You have a crush. My daughter has a crush. Her first crush. Yaay. Yaay. Yaay," she hugged me suddenly. She called me her daughter. I held her for a as realized that she did truly love me. She had said that before. Yet, it was that day when I truly believed it.

" I love you," I blurted and fled before she could react.

I did have a crush on Luke and she didn't stop teasing me about it. That was the mother daughter relationship I would have with someone, I had never imagined that. My crush was crushed the day Thalia started dating Luke. I was happy for my best friends. Liv and Dad were there again.

When I was 15, I had my first boyfriend, Ethan, his name, he was older to me by one year. The first person I told about it was Liv. She was so happy that day. When we broke up next year, I was a mess. My heart was broke. But, she was always there. She hugged me and calmed me down. I still remember that day. I had fallen asleep in her bed. She had let me stay there all night.

" Are you okay, Beth?" Liv asked me caressing my hair when I woke up the next day. She was sitting next to where I lay.

" I am okay," I mumbled as I shoved myself up and put my head in her lap.

" That's great. You wanna eat something?"

" Yeah, pancakes please."

" Alright coming right up."

" Thanks m-...mom," I said looking at her face. " I can call you that, right?"

" Of course," she almost jumped up with joy. " I would love that. I am gonna make your food. Come down in 10."

When I went down, I heard some whispering.

" She called me Mom, Fred, MOM," Liv was whispering in excitement to my dad.

" How long have you been waiting for that?" Dad said with a chuckle.

" I am just ecstatic," Liv was saying. " Feels like my family is complete. Thanks to you."

Even when my father wasn't there. Liv was. She always had my back. I guess, she loves me more than her biological children and I am so grateful for that. She is the one I call up when ever I am in doubt or there is something new going on with me. My biological mother barely calls me on my birthday. She forgets sometimes. It doesn't bother me much anymore. I am content with my family and friends too."

" Well of course you should be. After all, I am your best friend," Percy says with a teasing smile.

" Whatever," I hurl a cushion towards him.

" Jokes apart," he smiles warmly. " I want to meet your mother. Olivia. To clarify. She sounds to be an amazing woman."

" She is," I close my eyes briefly.

" Yeah, and I can't wait to see her. When are they arriving?"

" Oh tomorrow," I jump up. The bounce leading to Percy letting go of my hand. I already miss the warmth and how I feel like grabbing it again. My hand is small compared to his.

" What happened?" Percy shoots up.

" I gotta go," My voice is jumpy. " Do the preparations."

" I'll drop you," he says. " It is almost time to get Perrie back home. Lets go."

" Yeah of course."

I grab my stuff and pack my belongings by the time Percy gets the car keys. I wait as he comes towards me carrying a small box.

" Here you go," he puts it in my hand and motions me to come along.

" What is this?" I walk after him.

" Cookies," he deadpans. " You loved them, right?"

" Yeah. But, I was only joking. Not that I wanted you to give it all to me," I say. Honestly, any girl would be lucky to have him. I want to kiss him right now.

" Just keep it girl," he rolls his eyes. " I want you to have them. Come on, we getting late."

I can't describe in words how much I love you.

 **A/N- Thank you so much for reading. So much for updating soon. Anyway, I hope y'all are enjoying the new year as well as the story. Leave me a review as to what you thought of it. I'll be updating soon(Well, I'll try.) Thanks to all who reviewed last chapter.**


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